In the Heat of The Night
by nomoresassy
Summary: NS Nick and Sara begin to question their true feeling for one another after Sara is attacked at a crime scene and Nick is shot trying to save her.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or the T.V show. I just wish the writers would take the hint and put Nick and Sara together. Please Read and Review. Thanks!!

In the Heat of the Night

Nick looked down at the outline of where the body had been and sighed, another senseless murder. He lifted the camera and began taking pictures of the blood splatter on the floor. He hoped this would be a quick case. Brass had just received a call from a neighbor a few houses down that a suspicious looking man had just run through her yard. Brass and the cops working the scene had gone to check it out. When Nick finished taking the pictures he placed the camera back in the bag and glanced around the spacious living room looking for anything out of place as he waited for Sara to return from her primary search of the upstairs.

All of a sudden Nick heard her scream his name and his heart stopped for a moment. He could hear the sound of panic in her voice as it resounded down the stairway. He willed his body to move from the spot where it stood frozen. The sound of a loud crash and Sara's muffled scream set his body into motion. He took the stairs two at a time.

As Nick reached the top of the stairway, he could hear the sounds of a violent struggle coming from one of the far rooms down the hallway. A terrifying realization suddenly struck him. He had no backup. The cops were all down the street. It was up to him to help Sara. He swallowed his anxiety and raced down the dark hall, pulling his gun out. He skidded to a halt in front of a closed door. He heard her scream his name again but this time her voice was full of pain. He reached for the handle and hesitated for a second when he heard a deep throaty laugh and the words "You're going to enjoy this baby" and Sara's soft sobs of "No, No, No!"

He grasped the handle and turned it. The door wouldn't budge. It was locked. He cursed to himself as he tried to shove it open with his shoulder. "Sara!" he yelled, "I'm right here." He slammed into the door with his full body weight. It held. He slammed into it again this time feeling pain course through his shoulder. "Damn it! Damn it!" he yelled, feeling his frustration mount. He heard her sob his name and plead, "Please help me."

Without further thought he fired 2 shots into the door handle. He backed up and sent his foot crashing into the door. It flew open and slammed against the wall, the sound echoing in the suddenly quiet room. He entered quickly with the gun held out in front of him. His eyes scanned the room looking for any kind of movement. He noticed an over turned chair and a broken lamp near a large mahogany desk. There were books and papers scattered across the floor as well as a smashed computer monitor. He concluded it must be some sort of office.

His eyes shot to the desk when he heard the sound of a soft whimper come from behind it. He cautiously made his way toward the desk as his eyes continued to scan the dark room. When he reached the desk he glanced down behind it and his heart broke at the sight before him.

Sara was lying there half unconscious. She was bleeding from a deep gash on her forehead. She left cheek was bruised like she had been punched and her lower lip was bleeding. Her shirt had been torn open but her lacey turquoise bra was still in place, thank god. Her pants had been undone but where still up around her waist. Nick sighed with relief. He hadn't been too late.

His head jerked up when he heard a noise from the other side of the room. He reacted instantly when he realized someone was shooting at him. He threw himself down on the ground behind the desk. He looked over at Sara again and met her frightened eyes. "You're safe, " he whispered. She gave him a trembling half smile as she reached up and touched her forehead. She winced in pain and looked at her bloody fingertips.

Just then they heard a voice that chilled their blood. "Sara," the voice hissed, " I'll be looking forward to finishing what I've started." "Like hell you bastard!" Nick growled as he rose up on his knees and fired his gun. The sound of a sliding door opening and retreating laughter echoed threw the room. "Son of a bitch" Nick yelled as he jumped to his feet and moved swiftly across the carpeted floor toward the sliding glass door. He ran out onto a deck and saw stairs that descended to the yard below.

As Nick made his way toward the stairs he could see the shadowy figure of the man running into a thicket of large bushes. He heard the sound of a gun firing and felt the distinct breeze of a bullet sailing uncomfortably close to his ear. He threw himself down onto the deck. He lay there for a minute waiting. When nothing happened he scrambled to his feet and practically jumped down the stairs to the ground below. His eyes scanned the bushes but he knew the suspect was gone.

Nick needed to get back to Sara. He pulled out his cell and called for an ambulance, as he quickly climbed the stairs. He entered the room and saw that Sara had crawled across the floor toward the slider. Her terror filled eyes relaxed slightly when she realized it was him. "Sara," he gently said as he knelt down beside her. He reached out and cupped her face, his thumb softly caressing her cheek. "I'm sorry. He got away." he whispered. She nodded sadly. He watched, as her tear-laden eyes suddenly got huge. "Nick," she breathed heavily, "Your hurt." His eyes clouded for a minute, as he shook his head no. He felt it then a deep pain in his shoulder. His eyes followed hers to his blood soaked shirt. She scrambled to her knees as she muttered, "Oh my god! You've been shot."

Nick's eyes met her concerned ones as he sat back on the floor. She quickly took control of the situation. She pulled his shirt up and eased his good arm out of the sleeve and then managed to get his head out. She then gingerly pulled the shirt away from the wound and slid it down his arm. He winced in pain.

He watched her as she examined the wound. Her beautiful face was streaked in blood and bruises. The gash on her forehead was beginning to crust over. Her cheek was an ugly shade of red and her bottom lip was swollen. She had taken a hell of a beating. He knew she must be in serious pain but here she was taking care of him. He had a strong urge to take her in his arms and never let her go. He tried not to think of what could have happened to her if he hadn't been able to get into the room.

Nick watched in quiet fascination as she slid her shirt off her arms and brought in up to the wound on his shoulder. He winced again when he felt her put pressure on his injury. "I'm sorry. But I need to stop the bleeding." she said sincerely. He nodded and gave her a smile. She shifted closer to him on her knees and that's when he noticed the angry red bruises on her neck. "Jesus," he said as he reached out with his good hand to touch her neck. She flinched involuntarily at his touch. "I'm sorry," he mumbled meeting her eyes again. "It's okay," she whispered. She slowly reached out and took his hand. They sat there in silence just looking at each other. In the distance he could here the sound of the ambulance as it approached.

From downstairs he could here the sound of running feet and Brass's worried voice as he called out their names. "We're upstairs in the last room on the right," Nick yelled out. Sara smiled at him and said, "I called him on my cell when I heard you call the ambulance." He squeezed her hand and gave her a grateful smile. Brass flew into the room followed by several cops all with their weapons drawn. "He's long gone but if you want to double check he headed down the stairs and into the bushes on the left." Nick said. Brass signaled to 4 of the cops to go and search the area.

Brass squatted down and said, "Jesus look at the two of you. I'm sorry. I thought the place was clear. I left one guy outside but the perp knocked him out cold. He's just coming around now. I really am sorry." Nick and Sara nodded. "How bad is it?" Brass asked as he gestured to Nick's shoulder. "Looks like the bullet went all the way through. There's an entrance wound and an exit wound." Sara said. Brass turned toward Sara and took his first good look at her. His worried eyes searched her battered face and traveled to her bruised neck. "God Sara," he muttered. "I'm fine," she said avoiding his eyes. Nick was still holding her hand and he gave it a gentle squeeze. She smiled at him and squeezed his hand back.

Nick noticed a slight movement behind Brass and his eyes shot up to the cop standing behind him. Nick turned his head to see what the cop's eyes were so focused on. A slow burn began to build in his belly. The cop's eyes were glued to Sara's breasts. She was still on her knees and leaning slightly forward holding her shirt on his wound. The rounded tops of her breasts spilled out of her turquoise bra. His eyes shot to the cop's and he growled in warning. The cop, understanding the meaning, turned away. Nick turned back to Brass and said, "Do you have anything to cover her up with." Brass nodded and removed his jacket. He handed it to Sara and stood up to go over to reprimand the cop and his wandering eyes.

Sara took the jacket and turned to look at Nick with questioning eyes. He turned his head away trying to get his emotions back under control. He couldn't quite except that he was feeling jealous of some man checking Sara out. She stared at the side of his turned head for a moment feeling confused by his actions. It seemed like he was jealous. But that was ridiculous they were just friends. She set her bloodied shirt on the carpet and pulled on Brass's jacket. She quickly picked the shirt up again and pressed it against Nick's shoulder. Nick groaned, his head still turned away from her. "I'm sorry," she said as she scooted closer to him.

"Nick," she whispered, "Please look at me." He turned and his angry eyes met her worried ones. He reached out and gently touched her face. "Does it hurt?" he asked softly. "Like hell," she replied with a little grin. "I'm sorry I didn't get to you sooner," he said. "You came. That's all that matters." she said quietly. "But that bastard almost…. he got away…if he had touched you Sara I…" Nick hesitated his beautiful eyes swimming with emotion. Sara reached out and gently caressed his face, surprised by the depth of emotions she saw clearly displayed in his eyes. "I'm okay Nick. You're the one who took a bullet rescuing me," she smiled. "Yeah I guess I did do that didn't I?" he grinned back. But his eyes grew serious again as he reached up and placed his hand over hers on his cheek and said, " You know I'd never let anyone hurt you. I'd protect you know matter what." Her eyes filled with tears at his declaration and she whispered, " I'd do the same for you too, Nick." They stared at each other not sure exactly what was happening between them.

In the next moment the ambulance attendants whisked into the room and they were pulled apart. Nick watched as a female attendant examined Sara's face and neck. He saw her wince in pain when the woman touched her ribs. Christ how bad was she hurt? She never let on to her pain as she took care of him. He should have known better. Sara would never admit to anyone the amount of pain she was feeling physically as well as mentally. She always liked to handle it herself. Well this time he was not going to let her. He felt a sharp pain in his shoulder and he growled up at the paramedic helping him. "Sorry," the man said sheepishly.

Sara felt him watching her as she was being examined. She felt her stomach fill with butterflies. She knew Nick cared about her and they enjoyed flirting with one another but tonight she saw something else in his eyes. She winced when the paramedic touched her ribs. The maniac had roughed her up more then she thought but she had given as good as she got. If she hadn't tripped over the broken lamp she might have been able to beat him. But once he had her on the floor and he had put his full weight on top of her, she felt powerless and god how she hated that feeling. Past memories had flown into her mind and she had become trapped by them. She was ashamed that she had begun to cry and had lost her will to fight him. It was like déjà vu all over again. She shook her head trying to clear it of the awful memories.

She turned her head at the sound of Nick's growl. She couldn't help but smile when the paramedic tried to clean out Nick's wound. Nick let out a string of curse words and growled again. He turned his head and looked over at Sara. He saw her smiling at him and couldn't help but smile back. "I called the ambulance for you and now it seems like I'm the one who is going to be riding in it." Nick grumbled. "I get to ride with Brass and fill him in on what happened. I guess I'll see you at the hospital." Sara said. Nick gave her one of his beautiful lopsided smiles and said, "It's a date."

She watched as the paramedic escorted him out the door and thought to herself that she really wouldn't mind going out on a real date with him but she knew he would never officially ask. Nick did not see her as girlfriend material and there was the misconstrued notion that she was hung up on Grissom, was being the operative word. She had seen the error of her ways and was ready to move on. She sighed as she stood up and headed over to Brass. "You ready?" he asked. "Yeah," she smiled, "I have a date with a hot guy at the hospital." Brass gave her a questioning look and she just shook her head and said, "Never mind. Let me tell you about my fun filled fight fest." She linked her arm through his and they headed out the door.

Please let me know how you liked it. Chapter 2 will be posted soon. Thanks.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Nick waited restlessly in a small cubicle in the ER. The doctor had examined him and said the wound looked good. There was no major muscle damage. He would have to keep his arm in a sling for a week and then start physical therapy when the wound was fully closed. The doctor gave him a prescription for a course of antibiotics and something for the pain. Nick was now waiting on his discharge paperwork. He had been here for almost 2 hours and had yet to see Sara.

After Nick had given his statement to Brass, Brass had told him that Sara had gone for x-rays on her ribs and the doctor wanted to observe her to make sure she didn't have a concussion because of the seriousness of her head wound. Brass filled him in on what Sara had told him. Nick grimaced when he realized how brutal the fight had been. He was glad she hadn't been hurt worse. Regardless of her ability to defend herself, he still worried.

After Brass had left, he had tried to sort out exactly what he was feeling. He knew he cared about Sara and he was definitely attracted to her. He enjoyed their flirty relationship but he knew she didn't see him as anything more then a friend. She liked Grissom, and he and Grissom were like night and day. Therefore he had never thought about pursuing her but tonight he had seen something in her eyes. When she had touched his cheek he had felt his whole body begin to heat. And when the cop was staring at her breasts he had felt a huge wave of jealousy roll through him. He had wanted to be the only man to see her like that. God she had looked good kneeling there taking care of him in just her sexy turquoise bra. What the hell was he going to do?

As he had lain there thinking, Grissom had come in. He filled his boss in on what had happened. Grissom then gathered what evidence he needed from him and his clothes and told Nick to take the next 4 nights off to recuperate. Grissom said he'd check in with him tomorrow and let him know how they were doing. Catherine and Warrick were on the scene collecting all the evidence. In a way that was solely unique to Grissom he clumsily told Nick he was glad he was all right. With that said he was out the door to find Sara.

After waiting another half hour a nurse finally came in with his paperwork, as quickly as possible he finished and headed out to find Sara. As he rounded a corner he stopped dead in his tracks. In the cubicle straight ahead of him he saw Grissom and Sara. He watched as Grissom took Sara's hand in his and he felt another wave of jealousy roll through him. He saw Sara smile at something Grissom said and then her beautiful brown eyes clouded over. She pulled her hand away from his and began to shake her head furiously. He watched as Grissom squared his shoulders and then he bent down and kissed Sara's forehead. He brusquely turned around and headed out the door. Nick had just enough time to jump around the corner before his boss saw him.

Nick stood there for a moment contemplating what he had just witnessed. He had never seen Grissom show any kind of affection toward any of them like that before. Obviously the boss did have feeling for Sara. "Christ," he thought, "What the hell I'm I suppose to do now?" He ran his hand over his face and sighed. He knew he wanted to more then just friends with her. But how the hell was he suppose to get her to see him when Grissom was blocking the way."

Nick peered around the corner to make sure Grissom was gone and frowned when he saw Sara crying. He hesitated a moment but his need to comfort her drove him forward. He stood outside her doorway and quietly said, "Hey." She looked up at him; startled that someone had caught her crying. She wiped frantically at her tears and managed a forced smile and said, "I was wondering what had happened to my rescuer."

Nick grinned and made his way to her bed. He sat down on the edge facing her. He reached up and wiped at a tear. "You okay?" he asked gently. She looked down at her hands and nodded slowly. "Hey," he said placing his finger under her chin and lifting her face, "It's me your own personal hero. What's wrong?"

" My hero huh?' she smiled. He smiled back at her. "I always wanted to be someone's hero and I couldn't have picked a more gorgeous, fair maiden to rescue." "Nick," she laughed as she playfully poked him with her finger. "Now there's that beautiful smile I love." He said with a grin.

Sara looked at him for a moment and realized he was serious. "Thank you," she said softly taking his hand. "Everything just catching up to me. You could have been killed tonight Nick." He stared at her in amazement. She was more worried about him even after what had almost happened to her. "Sara we're both okay and we're going to catch the guy that did this to us." She sighed and looked away for a moment before meeting his eyes. "I don't know Nick. He was wearing latex gloves and a full-face ski mask. I know I hit him hard enough to draw blood lets just hope Cath or Warrick find some." "Hey don't doubt the ability of our co-workers. They'll come through, okay Sara?" Nick squeezed her hand. "Yeah you're right." Sara said with a yawn.

"You must be exhausted. Why don't you lay down." Nick said. Sara groaned as she lay back on the bed. "How are your ribs?" Nick asked. "Bruised and sore as hell." she answered. Just then a nurse entered the room. "Miss Sidle how are you feeling?" "Like I just got hit with a bus." Sara replied. "You're going to be sore for a few more days. The doctor gave you a prescription for the pain. Take these now and they should help you get some sleep." The nurse said as she handed Sara 2 pills and a glass of water. "When can I leave?" Sara asked. "The doctor said if you had someone who could stay with you and watch you you'd be able to leave in the next couple of hours. Do you have anyone?" Sara started to shake her head no when Nick interceded. "Sara I could stay with you if you wanted? We could just stop at my place so I could grab some of my stuff. Plus I am going to need some help with bum shoulder. We could help each other," he said with a grin. Sara sat there staring at him and Nick began to think he had over stepped the bounds of there friendship.

Sara could see Nick's cheeks begin to turn pink. She stole a glance at the nurse who was looking at her like she was insane if she didn't say yes to the gorgeous man who asked if she wanted him to move in with her. Sara's eyes flew back to Nick's and she asked, "Are you sure? I mean you want to stay with me? You know how irritable and stubborn I am. Why would you want to subject yourself to that?" Nick started to laugh; relieved she hadn't given him a flat out no. "Sara you're not that bad. Besides I think it may be fun. It would give us a chance to get to know each other better." "I…" Sara started as she glanced back over at the nurse who was giving her a look of if you don't say yes then I'll take him home with me, even though she was at lest twice their age. "Ah sure why not. If you really don't mind." Nick began to grin and she heard the nurse sigh in relief. "Great! Let me go see if I can get us a ride. I'll be back in a few." Nick bent down and gave her a quick peck on the cheek and headed out the door.

Sara groaned. The nurse started to laugh. "Thank god you said yes honey. That man is absolutely gorgeous. What I wouldn't give to have him staying at my house. That fine body and the sexy smile, he's going to take care of you all right." the nurse finished with a wicked grin. "What? Sara exclaimed, "Oh no we're only friends. He doesn't see me that way." "Well you better look again honey, that boy has a major thing for you. Can't you tell by the way he looks at you?" the older woman asked. Sara shook her head no. "The question is honey how do you feel about him? Cause if I were you and 20 years younger I'd have the man in my bed as fast as possible." The nurse gave Sara a smile and turned to head out the door. "I'll get your discharge papers together. And Sara?" the nurse said over her shoulder. "Yeah?' Sara answered. "Just in case you hadn't realized it yet, you look at him the same way he looks at you. I'll be back." Sara sank back into the pillow, closed her eyes and groaned. What the hell had she gotten herself into? There was no way she was going to be able to live in her very small apartment with him in constant touching range. She would never be able to keep her hands off his incredibly fine body or not stare at his handsome face. What if the nurse was right and he had feelings for her too? God she had too much to think about without adding thoughts of a very naked Nick in her bed. What the hell was she going to do?

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Please review and tell me what you think. Chapter 3 should be up soon. Thanks!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 

Exactly two hours later Nick was sitting on Sara's couch with his feet propped up on her coffee table. He had run into Brass in the hallway at the hospital. Brass had agreed to take them home. He was feeling extremely bad about what had happened to his friends so he was more then willing to offer his assistance. Luckily for Nick, Brass had an extra button-up shirt for him to wear since his shirt was now evidence. Brass also had found a tee shirt for Sara in his car as her shirt was also at the lab being processed. When Sara was finally discharged, they headed to Nick's to get his stuff and when Brass dropped them off it was almost 5 o'clock in the morning.

Sara handed Nick a glass of ice water and plopped down beside him on the couch. "Hell of a night." Nick grinned at her. "You can say that again." Sara grinned back. When he finished his water, he took his glass and placed it on the coffee table. Sara leaned her head back against the couch and closed her eyes. 'Tired?" he asked. "Exhausted for once in my life." She answered without opening her eyes. "Sara?" he said softly. "Mmm?" she said opening one eye. " Are you really all right?" he asked.

Sara opened both eyes and turned her head to meet his concerned eyes. "I think I will be." She said quietly with a sad smile. He reached over and took her hand in his. "I'm here if you want to talk. I don't want you to shut me out. Okay?" He held her gaze, his eyes telling her how serious he was. "I'm not very good at opening up Nick. I'll try though. I am glad you're here." She squeezed his hand to reiterate her sincerity. He gave her one of his handsome Nick Stokes grins and leaned his head back against the couch and closed his eyes. The traumatic events of the night finally caught up with them both and they fell into an exhausted sleep on the couch.

Nick woke to the sound of a whimper. He opened his eyes slowly not sure of where he was. He snuggled into the warmth that was pressed against the front of his body. He went to move and a hot flash of pain shot threw his shoulder. He groaned. He then realized that he was lying on his good shoulder on Sara's couch and she was spooned in against him. His slinged arm was resting on her hip. He heard her whimper again and quietly moan, "No please, no. Stop." Nick held his breath and his heart broke just a little at the sound of her words. "Sara," he said quietly, "Sara wake up darlin'"

Her eyes fluttered at the sound of his voice. "Nick?" she murmured sleepily, turning her head slowly toward his voice. "Yes it's me." "Why are you in my bed?' she asked opening one eye. He chuckled and said, "I'm not." Both Sara's eyes flew open and she asked, "Why am I in your bed then?" Nick started to laugh and said, "We're on your couch. We fell asleep early this morning remember." Her eyes clouded for a minute and then she nodded her head. She went to move and let out a small gasp.

Nick immediately pulled himself up and asked worriedly, "Are you okay?' "Yeah. My ribs are just a little tender, along with the rest of my body. He must of hit me harder then I thought." Sara watched as Nick's eyes flared with anger. "Bastard" he hissed.

Sara sat up slowly and met his eyes "Nick, I'm okay. You were the one shot." "Speaking of which I should call Warrick and see if they found a hit on any of the bullets they found." Nick said as he swung his feet to the floor. "Nick," she said hesitantly, " He shot you with my gun." "What?" he said looking at her. "He knocked my gun out of my hand. He must have found it after," she said sheepishly.

Nick looked at her for a moment and then started laughing. "Nick!" she said exasperated, "This is serious!" "I would have loved to have seen you're face. You must have been pissed. I bet that guy didn't know what hit him after that, the wrath of Hurricane Sara." Nick chuckled. Sara couldn't help but smile. "Yeah I was pissed off. If I hadn't of tripped over that damn lamp I would have whooped his butt." "Whooped his butt huh?" "You bet," she laughed. "Well you took the news better then Grissom did. I had to listen to a lecture on maintaining control of one's gun at all times." Sara sighed. Nick laughed again and patted her knee. "That's just how he is Sara." "I just wish he was a little more understanding. He was angry that I fought that guy. But there was nothing I could do. I had to try and apprehend the suspect." Sara said heatedly. "Sara you had to defend yourself. That bastard tried to rape you." Nick retorted.

Sara suddenly stood up and walked away. "Shit," Nick said to himself as he pushed himself off the couch to follow her. He found her in the kitchen standing in front of the sink. "Sara, I'm sorry." Nick said quietly. When she didn't respond, he walked over to her and gently turned her around. Silent tears were slowly rolling down her beautiful face. He reached out and slowly caressed her cheek. She leaned into his touch and closed her eyes. "I hate myself for feeling so helpless. I promised myself I would never feel that way again." Her eyes flew open when she realized what she had said. Nick's eyes widened at her confession but he did not say a word. He just continued to gently stroke her cheek.

She held his gaze and slowly said, " I was nineteen years old and a sophomore in college when it happened. I was on my way back from the library. It was after midnight and very dark. I never saw his face. It happened so fast. I never told anyone." She turned her head away from his caress, ashamed. He reached out and touched her face again turning it back toward his. His beautiful brown eyes were full of tears. "I'm so sorry baby, so sorry," he whispered pulling her close to him. He felt her begin to cry and then the sobs came. She clung to the front of his shirt and cried her heart out as he held her as best as he could with one arm. He felt his own tears roll slowly down his face.

After awhile her tears became quiet hiccups. "I'm sorry," she said self-consciously leaning back to look up at him. She was taken back when she saw the tear tracks on his cheek. He had cried with her. She felt a tender warmth spread through her. No one had ever cried for her before. He looked down at her with his big brown eyes and said, "It's okay. I'm just glad you told me. It explains a lot of things." She looked at him questioningly. "Cases involving abused women seem to affect you more then the rest of us," he said gently. She reached up and touched his cheek and then surprised him with a quick kiss on his lips. "Thank you for listening and being here with me." He stood there to stunned to speak, the heat of her kiss lingered on his lips as well as the taste of her sweetness.

She watched as a spark of desire flamed to live in his eyes. She felt her body ignite with arousal and had to take a step back away from him. Embarrassed by her actions she mumbled, "I need to go clean up. I can just imagine how awful I look." "Your beautiful Sara. No bruises could ever deter that fact." He said seriously. "Nick," she sighed. They stared at each other a moment both very aware of the smoldering heat that had been ignited between them. Unable to hold his hungry gaze, she muttered, "I have to use the bathroom," and fled as fast as she could. She leaned against the closed bathroom door trying to get her raging hormones back under control. What was she going to do? She wanted Nick Stokes and much to her surprise it seemed he wanted her too.

Nick groaned and leaned against the counter. His not to subtle look of 'I want you naked and underneath me now' had scared her off. God he was a fool. After everything she had been through, know wonder she ran and locked herself in the bathroom. He would just have to back off and offer her his friendship. Maybe sometime in the future she would want to go out on a date. He was not giving up because he had definitely seen a spark of desire in her eyes and that little bit of knowledge gave him hope. He couldn't help but smile.

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Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review. I still have quite a few more chapters. Thanks!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Sara dared a glance at the mirror in her bathroom and groaned at the sight she saw. God how could he possibly think she was beautiful. A 3-inch gash blazed above her right eye. Her left cheek was a deep shade of red with hints of an ugly bruise to come and her lower lip was swollen. Her eyes traveled lower to the angry red marks on her neck. She reached up and gingerly touched them. If given the chance that maniac would have killed her, squeezed until her life's breath left her. She shuttered thinking how close she had actually come to not making it if Nick hadn't gotten into the room when he did. She closed her eyes and sighed. She couldn't think about it anymore. She had a more serious dilemma to figure out, what was she going to do about the handsome, sexy man in her kitchen?

She stripped off her clothes and turned the shower on as hot as she could stand it. The water caressed her aching skin as she let the horrid memories of the bastard's hands touching her wash down the drain. Instead she imagined a gorgeous Texan softly stroking her skin, placing gentle kisses along her neck, running his big hands up and down her aching body. She groaned, those images were definitely not helping. She shampooed her hair quickly and rinsed off. She climbed out of the shower and went to grab a towel. When she glanced in the mirror she gasped at what she saw. The front of her body was a series of black and blue marks, especially around her ribs.

Nick was walking down the hall when he heard a gasp from the bathroom. He went to the door and knocked, urgently asking, "Are you all right Sara?" When she didn't respond he turned the handle and opened the door. He gazed into the steam filled room and saw a very startled Sara frantically trying to wrap a towel around her self. "Nick," she hissed, "What the hell are you doing?""I ahhh heard you gasp. I thought you were hurt." Nick answered sheepishly, trying desperately not to stare at her almost naked body.

Sara couldn't help but laugh at his dreadful effort not to look at her. "I'm fine Nick. I just didn't realize how bruised my body was, that's all." Relieved that Sara was not mad at him for busting into the bathroom he decided to have a little fun. "If you want I can give you my valued opinion on how serious I think those bruises are." Nick said with a sexy grin. "Nick," Sara said shaking her head. She grasped the towel tightly around her body and walked toward the door. Stopping in the doorway she turned and gave him a playful smile and said, "I'll keep that in mind Nick because I may definitely need your valued opinion in the future." With that said she glided out the door.

Nick stood there dazed for a moment as he listened to her bedroom door close. Did she just say and mean what he thought she did. A small smile spread across his face. Hell yeah! Sara Sidle had just come on to him. With a happy grin on his face he headed out to the kitchen to find something to eat. He was starving. He opened her refrigerator and groaned. There was a head of lettuce, 2 tomatoes, a cucumber, a bag of carrots, a carton of orange juice, a 6 pack of beer, a stick of butter and a package of processed cheese. He headed over to her cabinets and found a half a loaf of multigrain bread and a couple of cans of soup. Not the greatest meal but it would have to do. He got out the ingredients he needed and sighed in frustration when he couldn't get the soup opened because of his arm in the sling.

"Need some help Cowboy?" He slowly turned around and gave her a frustrated smile as his eyes ran appreciatively up and down her body. She stood there in a blue tank top and denim shorts. He couldn't help but whistle when he saw her long legs. "Damn Sidle you have some mighty fine legs." " Thanks I find them pretty handy on occasion," she said with a sexy smirk. Nick blinked for a moment then let out a deep laugh. "Damn woman you just sent my imagination into overdrive." She let out a laugh and gave him a big toothy smile. "Let me help you hero of mine."

They worked side by side, with Nick doing what he could. Soon they were both seated at the table eating grilled cheese sandwiches and soup. They ate in comfortable silence each enjoying their food. When they finished Nick helped her clear the table. " I think I want to try and take a shower." Nick said. "Did the doctor say you could?" Sara asked as she finished rising the last dish. "Yeah as long as I don't get the wound too wet." "Let me get you a towel, and a couple of things I need for the handy solution. You go get your clothes and I'll meet in the bathroom."

A few minutes later Nick entered the bathroom carrying his clothes. "The towel is right there on the sink. You'll have to take off the sling and your shirt so I can cover your wound," Sara said holding up a plastic bag and some waterproof medical tape. Nick raised his eyebrows in confusion. "Saw it on a television show once." She said with a sheepish smile. Nick grinned at her a moment before asking," Sara do you think you can help me with the sling and my shirt?" "Ah Stokes I knew you had a secret desire to have me undress you." Sara said with a smirk. "Yes but that desire also included me reciprocating the favor." Nick replied with a sexy smirk of his own. Nick watched in fascination as Sara's cheeks began to turn pink. "I do believe I just made you blush Ms. Sidle. Could it be that you have perhaps had the same said desire?" Nick said with a wicked smile. Fighting her embarrassment, Sara met his gaze and started to say, "I…"when Nick's cell began to ring.

Sara gave him a triumphant grin and tried to turn away when Nick grabbed her arm and said,"Darlin' this conversation is definitely not finished." He reached into his pant pocket and pulled out his phone. "Stokes"… "Hey man what's up"... "Alright but it still hurts when I move it a certain way"… "What did you find out?"

As Nick listened to Warrick tell him about the case, Sara began to help him off with the sling. She could feel his heated gaze on her so she avoided his eyes. She wanted to complete this task as fast as possible and distance herself from his presumptuous scrutiny. She wasn't sure exactly what she would have said to him earlier about her similar desire. He made her very nervous when he watched her with that predatory gleam in his eye. She tried to steady her hands as she began to unbutton his shirt. Thank god he was on the phone otherwise he would be getting way to much enjoyment out of this situation.

Her hand hesitated at the last button and she risked a glance up at his face. He gave her a huge "you enjoyed that didn't you' smirk. "Damn man," she thought as he stood there talking with the phone against his ear, smiling that sexy grin of his. She'd show him. Taking a deep breath she undid the last button. She raised her eyes to meet his. She placed her hand on his stomach and slowly ran it up his incredibly hard chest. She felt his sudden intake of breath as the palm of her hand slid across his taunt nipple. Ever so slowly she ran her hand up to his shoulder catching the shirt in her fingers. God his body felt incredible. Through the sound of the blood pounding in her head she heard him tell Warrick to hang on. Never breaking eye contact, he lowered the phone and held his arm out as she seductively slid the shirt off his good shoulder and down his arm. She held her breath, awaiting his reaction as she reached up with her other hand and laid it softly against his stomach. She watched captivated when a spark of desire began to dance in his beautiful brown eyes.

Her hand burned a trail across his skin as she touched it. He dropped his gaze and watched mesmerized as her other hand began a similar journey up his chest. He had to force himself not to close his eyes and moan at the sensations her touch was creating throughout his body. She stopped just below his shoulder and took a step closer to him. He could feel her hot breath against his collarbone. As gently as possible she slid the shirt off his shoulder and down his arm. She stepped back and gave him a victorious grin. He stood there dazed. "Phone Nick," she said smugly as she pointed to the cell in his hand. "Shit!" he had completely forgotten about Warrick.

Feeling foolish he lifted the phone back to his ear and said, " Sorry man, Sara was just helping me get undressed for my shower." "Nick!" Sara screeched as she heard a startled Warrick say loudly through the phone, "Come again?" Nick couldn't help but chuckle as he watched Sara's cheeks flare to a brilliant pink color. "Sara and I are helping each other out that's all. The doctor said she couldn't leave the hospital unless she had someone to watch her in case of a concussion. So being the gentleman that I am I volunteered my services and moved into her apartment. In exchange she gets to cook all my meals, do my laundry and give me sponge baths." Owww" Nick muttered when he felt a hand knock him up side the head. " Yeah she just hit me. Damn woman! Owww!" he said again as she began to remove his bandage none to gently. " No I didn't deserve it man. I gotta go. All right I'll tell her. See you guys in a while. Thanks."

Nick flipped the phone shut and glared at Sara. "That hurts," " I'm sorry," she said sweetly. "Warrick said to say hey and that he and Catherine will be over before shift to fill us in. They haven't found any substantial evidence yet. The autopsy came back on the victim. She was stabbed several times with a small pocketknife. Actual cause of death was strangulation." Nick watched as Sara subconsciously brought her hand to her neck. He met her eyes and said quietly, " She was also raped," Sara closed her eyes and turned away.

Nick gave her a moment and then reached out and touched her shoulder. She turned slowly and he took a step toward her and pulled her to him with his good arm. He sighed quietly as he felt her soft damp hair touch his face. He inhaled and let her scent surround him. She felt so right in his arms.

Sara tried desperately not to cry. Instead she concentrated on the man holding her. She rested her head against his muscled shoulder and spread her hands out over his back enjoying the sensation of his naked flesh against her fingertips. They stood there for the longest time taking pleasure in and seeking comfort from one another.

Sara was the first one to pull away. "Let me get you ready so you can take a shower." She was all business, avoiding his eyes as much as possible. Within a minute she had his shoulder covered with plastic and taped. "All set," she said backing toward the door. "Sara," he started when she cut him off. "I'm still kind of tired I'm going to go lay down for a couple of hours till War and Cath get here." She turned and scurried out the door.

Nick sighed. He knew she was going through a tremendous amount of stuff. He just wished she would open up to him more. She had taken a huge step with her confession and he was grateful for that. He thought maybe it was time to share some secrets of his own.

He managed to get his pants and boxers off and climbed into the shower. The hot water felt great against his aching body. Ten minutes later he was dressed in a pair of clean boxers. He tried unsuccessfully to rebandage his shoulder. He headed down the hall and gently knocked on her bedroom door. When she didn't answer and opened it softly. She was curled up on her side, sleeping peacefully. Damn he didn't want to wake her up. He turned to leave when he heard her softly call his name.

He turned back to look at her. "I'm sorry," he muttered, "I couldn't do this by myself," holding up the bandage and tape. She smiled softly at him and motioned for him to come to her. She sat up on her knees and scooted backwards on the bed. She patted the place in front of her.

Nick sat and handed her the stuff. He closed his eyes and relished the sensation of her fingertips brushing his skin. Rather then get up to put the front bandage on she leaned over his shoulder. Realizing her mistake to late when her chest pressed against his back. She felt him tense and she had to hold back her own groan. Instead of making a big deal about it, she continued her task.

Nick sat there unable to move. The shock of feeling her breasts pressed against his back raced through his body. He had to count to 20 silently willing his body back under control. When she finished she pulled away from him and he missed the heated contact immediately. He turned slowly to face her.

Sara met his passionate stare with one of her own. She let out a long hiss of breath as her eyes zeroed in on his lips. He watched through hooded eyes as her beautiful chocolate eyes settled on his lips. "Sara," he groaned. Her eyes quickly darted back to his and she smiled shyly at him. He reached up and gently caressed her cheek. "God I want to kiss you so bad right now darlin'" he whispered huskily. "But I don't want to hurt you," he said tracing his finger softly over her hurt lips. "Nick," she breathed hotly as she leaned forward and touched her lips with his tenderly. He let her take control of the kiss and enjoyed the sensation of her lips softly gliding over his. She pulled away from him slowly and reached up and touched her swollen lip. Meeting his eyes she asked seriously, "How long till this will go down." "Couple of days, but if you put some ice on it sooner. Why?"

Sara gave him a sexy smirk and said, "Oh I have plans for my mouth and your mouth buddy, big plans." "Big plans for our mouths huh? Will it also involve the sampling of other body parts I hope." He said with a devilish smile." "One step at a time Cowboy," she answered kissing him on the check. Leaning back on her pillow she yawned. "You should try and get some more sleep." Nick said standing up. She smiled up at him and said, "If you want you can use my hip as an arm rest again." A huge grin broke out across his face. "Are you sure?" "Nick just get in bed." "Thanks," he said climbing in behind her.

It took them a couple of minutes to get settle but finally their bodies were spooned comfortably together. Nick smiled down at the top of her head as he felt her body relax against his. He could definitely get use to this feeling. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep thinking about Sara and her wonderful plan.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters.

THANK YOU for the great reviews. It definitely helps me write more. Question: Did anyone else hear that G & J were fired? Where did you here this info? I am in shock. Please let me know Thanks!

Sorry this chapter is so short.

Chapter 5

The ringing of the doorbell brought Sara out of her sound sleep. She groaned silently. She did not want to get up. Glancing at the clock she realized it was probably Warrick and Catherine. She turned slightly and looked up at Nick. One of his brown eyes was open and looking at her. " Our co-workers I assume?" Nick said with a yawn. "I would say so," Sara grinned. She lifted his arm carefully off her hip and climbed out of bed. Nick rolled slowly over onto his back and groaned. "Did you take your medicine?" Sara asked. "Yep right after we ate. My shoulders just a little stiff that's all." Nick replied as he watched Sara stretch. He couldn't help but waggle his eyebrows at her when her tank top rose up and relieved a smooth area of her porcelain skin. "Nick you're impossible," Sara said with a smile as she turned to head out the door. Pausing in the doorway she said, "Please find some clothes to put on studly."

She grabbed a zip up sweatshirt and quickly put it on as she went to answer the door. She opened the door she looked up in surprise. There stood Gil Grissom holding a plant. "Grissom what are you doing here?' she stammered. "Just seeing if you were all right." He answered handing her the plant and scrutinizing her battered face. She stood there looking down at the plant then back up at her boss. "Thanks," she said. "Can I come in?" he asked. "Sure, yeah, I'm sorry. Come on in," she said moving back out of the doorway.

Grissom stepped inside and looked around her apartment. He had been there one other time and not much had changed since then Suddenly he heard "Sara can you help me with my sling. The damn thing won't go on right." Grissom headed whipped around to seek out the Texan drawl he knew very well. Down the hall came Nick Stokes in a pair of unbuttoned jeans and a sling hung crookedly across his naked chest. Grissom's headed whirled back around to see a very red faced Sara as she glared at Nick.

Nick stopped dead in his tracks when he realized Grissom was standing there and not Warrick or Cath. His eyes shot to Sara's. She looked like she was ready to kill him. "Did I interrupt something?" Grissom asked coolly. "Oh no," Sara mumbled, " Nick's here because he needed help with his shoulder and I couldn't be left alone because of my head injury." "He slept here then?" Grissom inquired.

Nick stood there and watched Sara's face turn a deeper shade of red. He wanted to tell Grissom it was none of his damn business who Sara spent the night with. He waited for Sara to say something to that effect but instead she stammered, "Yes he stayed here but it's not what you think." Nick looked over at Sara and raised an eyebrow at her statement. She avoided his eyes. A wave of anger coursed through him when he realized Sara did not want Grissom to know about them.

Grissom stood there for a moment watching the interplay between them. He did not like what he saw. Something was going on. "I should go," he said brusquely, turning toward the door. Nick watched as Sara tried desperately to rectify the awkward situation.

Grissom paid no attention to her explanations, instead he said, "I'll have someone call if we find anything new otherwise I expect to see you both at work in 3 days." With that said he was gone.

Sara leaned against the door and closed her eyes. After a few moments she opened them, glaring at Nick and angrily said, "That went real well. Why the hell did you have to come out here half naked?" "What? Nick growled, "I'm sorry I didn't know our boss paid you personal house calls and brought you gifts. If I'd of known I would have come out dressed for the occasion."

"I didn't know he was coming over," Sara snapped back. "Is he in the habit of just stopping by and giving you plants Sara? " Nick asked with an edge in his voice.

"No!" she answered glaring at him, "What's your problem anyway?"

"Is the idea that there may be something happening between us such an awful thought that you couldn't say something to Grissom about it or was it that you didn't want to blow your chance with the boss man?" Nick said angrily.

Sara stood there for a minute processing what he just said to her. She closed her eyes and then opened them looking into his angry dark eyes with her sad brown ones. "You don't understand Nick."

"Understand what exactly? That you're willing to wait around forever for Grissom to notice you. Well newsflash Sara it's been 4 years and he still has not made a move. Don't you think you've wasted enough of your life waiting on a man who is completely blind as to how amazing you are?"

He watched her eyes fill with tears. He knew he had gone to far. "Sara I'm sorry." She shook her head and turned away. He started toward her when the doorbell rang. "Damn," he growled to himself. He touched her shoulder and said, "We'll finish this later okay?" She didn't respond. She turned avoiding his eyes as she wiped furiously at her own. She headed silently to the door. She squared her shoulders and opened it. A man stood there holding the most beautiful bouquet of flowers she had ever seen. "Sara Sidle?" the man, asked, trying not to stare at her battered face. "Yes," she answered. "These are for you. Enjoy." He headed them to her and left.

Sara stood there staring at the flowers. She wondered who they were from. She turned and looked tentatively at Nick but his face was set in a deep scowl. No, they weren't from him. She set them down on the coffee table and searched for a card. There was none. She glanced up at Nick and his face was an unreadable mask. "They're gorgeous," she said quietly running her hand across the softness of the petals.

Nick slowly unclenched his fists. No card. It figures. It would be exactly like Grissom to do something anonymously. His plan had probably been to be here when the flowers arrived so he could see her exuberant reaction himself. Nick had to admit she loved the flowers. He just wished he had thought of it himself.

Nick stood there and watched her as she smiled at the flowers. "I wonder who they're from? I'll have to call the florist to see if the card got lost," she said. Nick cleared his throat. Sara looked over at him. "Sara," he started. "No Nick," she cut in, "I don't want to talk about it. Warrick and Catherine will be here any minute." "Sara" "No Nick! Maybe later." She gave her flowers one last look before heading down the hallway.

Nick heard the sound of her bedroom door closing. He ran his hand through his short dark hair and sighed. He let his jealousy get the best of him. He had pushed her to far with his words. Christ, what the hell was he going to do? Over the years he had fallen half way in love with her and now he could feel himself falling the rest of the way. It scared the hell out of him because he wasn't sure if her feelings for him were real or a distraction from Grissom's obliviousness. He sat down on the couch and closed his eyes hoping that she would eventually see what he felt for her was real and tangible.

Sara curled up on her bed fighting the tears that threaten to fall. She was so confused. Had Grissom sent her those beautiful flowers? She could tell by Nick's expression that he thought so. If he did, what did it mean? Was Grissom finally ready to move forward with her? And Nick? What did she feel for him? She knew she had feeling for him, for years now in fact. He was handsome as sin and undeniably sexy. And to top it off, he was a wonderful, caring man. How could she not have feeling for him? But he scared her because she could not quite except that he had feelings for her. He could have any woman he wanted. Why would he want her? Was she just a conquest to him to see if he could get in her pants or did she mean more than that to him? During their time together over the last 24 hours she could see something in his eyes, something strong and exciting. But could she trust what she saw or was she going to get her heart broken? She heard the doorbell ring and sighed as she sat up. Hopefully her friends would have some good news for her.

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Please review! Thanks!


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks for the low down on G& J. Very disappointing to say the least. A will keep my fingers crossed. Please read and review. Thanks!

Chapter 6

Nick watched Sara from across the table as they ate the vegetarian lasagna Catherine had brought them for dinner. She had been fairly quiet since their friends had left over an hour ago. The news they had brought hadn't been very good. The suspect had covered his tracks very well. All they had recovered from the scene were some fibers from the ski mask. No traces of blood had been found other than Sara's. Little evidence had been found on the female victim. They're most promising lead had been a boot print found out in the yard where Nick had chased the perp. He could tell by Sara's face she was feeling very discouraged.

They finished dinner and Sara stood to clear their plates. "Let me help you," Nick offered. "I can do it," she replied. "I don't mind Sar," he said picking up the salad bowl. "Suit yourself," she snapped. He stood there for a moment before he set the salad back down on the table and left the kitchen.

She watched him stalk away and admonished herself for being such a bitch. She sighed setting the plates down and followed him. He was in the living room putting his stuff into a duffel bag. "Nick, I'm sorry," she said. He didn't answer her or look at her. "What are you doing?" she asked quietly. "I think I should leave." He folded his shirt and placed it in his bag. "Nick," she tried again, "I didn't mean to snap at you. I'm just frustrated. I feel like I should be at the lab doing something. Not just sitting at home."

He stopped what he was doing and looked at her. "I know you're frustrated so am I. We'll be back to work in a couple of days. We'll find something. I know we will." He hesitated for a second before finishing, "I'm not leaving because of that." She met his eyes and knew the reason. "Nick, I don't know what to say to you. I'm confused right now." She stopped, throwing her arms up in the air exasperated. He watched her as she began to pace back and forth. She knew she needed to explain to him what she was feeling. He deserved to know, especially after she initiated their first kiss. He thought she was choosing Grissom over him but she wasn't.

She stopped and looked at him. "Grissom has been the center of my life for so long. Through the years he has led me along, always giving me small glimmers of hope to hold on too. A few months ago I heard him confess that he had feelings for me." She stopped turning away for a moment. Nick felt his stomach tie into a knot. She looked back at him and her big brown eyes were full of tears. "He said he couldn't risk his career. He couldn't risk his job for love or for the chance to be happy."

Nick's eyes widen in shock. What kind of fool was Grissom? Sara could have offered him a lifetime of love and joy and he chose his career! She held up her hand before he could speak. "It hurt more than I can say. It has taken me a long to get over it. But I decided that I needed to move on with my life and open the door to new possibilities," she stopped her eyes meeting his with a fixed stare, "or old ones." she finished. Her eyes shown with sincerity when she said, "You've always been there Nick, since the first time I met you."

He took a step closer to her, a surge of hope began to travel threw his body. She felt her heart begin to race as he moved closer to her. She looked down at her hands for a moment before meeting his eyes again. "You scare me Nick," she admitted. His eyes widen in surprise at her confession. "I have never been attracted to a man who is so completely different from me. Everything about us is contradictory. With Grissom I feel like I'm on solid ground and I can predict what the next move will be, it feels safe. But with you I feel like I'm on a boat in the middle of a raging storm. I can't get my bearings. And I definitely can't forecast what you're going to do. Are you in it for the thrill of it or are you going to ride out the storm with me?" She stopped and shook her head. "That sounded way too melodramatic," she grinned feeling foolish.

Nick grinned back at her. He stepped up close to her and put his hand against her cheek. "What would you say if I said I've wanted to sail around the world with you for a very long time but I was afraid you'd throw me overboard if I asked?" Her eyes widen slightly and she said, "You've wanted to ask me out? Since when?" "Since the first time I saw you," he answered. "Nick you could have any woman you want. What can you possibly see in me?"

"Sara,' he sighed. "I see you, all of you. You're beautiful, smart, caring, honest and sexy as hell. You're one of the most amazing women I've ever met and that blush of yours drives me wild." he said stroking her pink cheek. She looked into his eyes and whispered, "Nick I don't know how to do this." "I don't either but I want to do this right. I think you're worth the risk Sara." He let his words settle over her, watching as her eyes filled with tears. "But Sara you need to know right now, I will not be in Gil Grissom's shadow. You need to see me for who I am and like me for what I am. I want us to go out on dates. I want to be able to kiss you when I want too and where I want too. I want to walk down the street and let everyone know the beautiful woman on my arm is mine." He stopped his tirade and looked at her.

"Nick Stokes you will never be in Grissom's shadow, you out shine him any day." she said with fervor as clasped his handsome face in her hands and drew his mouth down to hers for a tender kiss. He pulled her closer wrapping his good arm around her. They kissed each other softly, enjoying the feel of the lips gliding together. Their tongues met in a quiet dance of bliss, as they savored the taste of each other. They pulled away slowly knowing they weren't physically able to do what they both really wanted and that was to ravish one other.

He ran his hands threw her silken hair and gently caressed her soft skin. "How long till we're both feeling 100%?" she breathed in his ear. "Too long," he chuckled. She leaned back and looked into his eyes with a playful grin on her face. "Ahh Mr. Stokes you should consider yourself very lucky because I happened to love foreplay." Nicks face broke out into a huge grin and the corner of his eyes crinkled. "You have my full attention now Miss Sidle. Exactly what would this foreplay include?" "Both of our hands are fully functioning right?" she grinned holding hers up and wiggling her fingers. "Oh I like the way you think Sar," Nick said as he leaned down to touch his lips to hers.

They stood there for a few more minutes enjoying the closeness they were feeling. Sara ran her hands threw his incredibly soft hair as Nick continued to stroke hers. They pulled away from one another reluctantly when they felt their bodies' becoming overheated. "Maybe we should watch a movie," Sara said running her fingers across her flushed cheeks. "Yeah good idea," Nick agreed rubbing the back of his neck trying to get his aroused body back under control.

They headed to the couch and sat down next to one another. Sara looked over at Nick as he looked at her. Their eyes flamed with the unreleased desire they still felt. "Maybe we shouldn't sit so close together," Sara said moving toward the opposite end of the couch. "You can't resist touching me can you Sar?" Nick said with a playful smirk. "Oh I can resist Cowboy, I was just worried about you." "Me! You don't need to worry. I am the king of resisting temptation." "Oh you think so Stokes?" Sara said sitting up and removing her zip-up sweatshirt. Nicks eyes traveled from her face down to her tank top, she wasn't wearing a bra.

Sara smiled in satisfaction when Nick's face flushed pink. "Now that's not playing fair Sara," Nick groaned meeting her amused eyes. "Who said anything about playing fair," Sara laughed as Nick began to slide towards her. He pulled her long legs up into his lap with his good arm. "I'd say your legs seem to be in wonderful working condition Sar," Nick grinned wickedly as he ran his hand along the underside of her calf. "Nick," she breathed heavily, as her eyes slowly closed. "If I recall correctly Miss Sidle, you said hands were okay." "Mmmm," she sighed as his hand found her other leg.

He watched her as her head fell back against the cushions, her eyes still closed. He glided his hand unhurriedly over her soft, smooth skin enjoying the heated sensation he felt underneath his fingertips. He shifted his focus from one leg to the other, slowly stroking her ankles, calves and her knees. As he made his made to the backs of her knees, Sara let out a throaty moan. His eyes flew to her passion filled ones. His body became rigid with desire in an instant. She looked utterly wanton lying there with her face flushed, her eyes glazed and her chest heaving.

Sara's eyes widen suddenly when underneath her leg she felt his obvious reaction to her moan. She pulled her legs out of his lap. "Maybe hands weren't such a good idea, Nick." she whispered. Nick ran his hands over his face and sighed heavily. "I feel like a horny teenager Sara. Christ I want. I want you now." His eyes flared with passion as he spoke. "God, I want you too, Nick." Sara huskily said.

He moved quickly, his hot, hungry mouth devouring hers. The sound of her whimper made him pull away. "I sorry Sara," he said realizing he had hurt her swollen lip. "It's okay," she whispered back. He leaned his head against hers and said, "I've waited years to be able to be this close to you. I guess I can handle waiting a few more days until I can have you completely." He felt her smile, as she ran her fingers threw his hair. "Nick?" she said quietly. "Mmm?" he said leaning back to see her smiling face. "I'm going to go get some ice. Why don't you see what's on the Discovery Channel." Sara said with a grin. "Sure," he said with a grin of his own.

Sara stood up and headed into the kitchen just as the phone rang. "Can you get that?" she called out. "Sure," Nick responded. "Sidle Residence," he said. No answer. "Hello" Nick said. Nothing. Nick listened until he heard the quiet click of the phone disconnecting. "Who is it?' Sara asked from the doorway. "Nobody there must've been a wrong number."

Just then Nick's cell rang. He raised his eyebrows at Sara. "Stokes," he answered. "Hey man what's up." Warrick he mouthed to Sara. She smiled as she held a bag of ice cubes against her lip. She watched as Nick's smile slipped from his face and his brow knotted up in concentration. She heard him growl, "Damn!" His eyes met hers as he flipped the phone shut. She knew something had happened and it definitely was not good.

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Sorry to leave you guys hanging but a little suspense can't hurt. Just so you're forewarned it may be a few days till I post again. SORRY!


	7. Chapter 7

Please be advised of the sexual content in this chapter. Very strong PG13 /R

Thanks! Please review.

Chapter 7

Nick flipped his phone closed and watched as Sara made her way toward him. His stomach clenched into a tight knot as he thought about her reaction to the news he was about to tell her.

Nick motioned for her to seat next to him. She stood there a moment staring down at him with worried eyes. "Nick what is it?" she asked urgently as she sat down next to him. He reached over and took her hand. Her eyes widened at his comforting gesture.

"Another girl was murdered tonight, same MO. She was stabbed several times and then strangled to death." he said quietly, stroking her hand with his thumb. "Was she raped?" Sara asked reluctantly. "Yes," Nick replied sympathetically. Nick watched as her shoulders sagged and her head dropped down toward her chest in defeat. He heard her quiet sigh. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

"Sara," he said softly. She looked over at him slowly and met his beautiful eyes, which were full of sadness and anxiety. She knew right away there was more. "Tell me," she demanded.

He tightened his grip on her hand, as he looked directly into her eyes and said, "Next to the victim written in her blood were the words "Soon Sara'." Nick watched as Sara's face blanched and she sat back against the couch.

She pulled her hand out from under his and brought it up to her face, covering her mouth. He watched silently as her eyes filled with tears. She sat for a minute, absorbing what Nick had said. She suddenly sprang to her feet and bolted down the hallway. "Sara," Nick called as he jumped up to his feet. He heard a door slam. He stopped outside the bathroom door and listened to the sound of her retching.

Nick waited till he heard the toilet flush and then he quietly opened the door and stepped inside. Sara sat leaning against the wall in front of the toilet, tears slowly sliding down her pale face. She looked up at him with her grief stricken eyes and whispered, "It's my fault. She's dead because of me."

Nick came forward and squatted down in front of her. "No Sara. You're wrong. It's not your fault." He placed his hand on her cheek to reassure her. Sara turned her head away from his hand. "He killed her to send me a message," she sighed heavily. She looked up at him and said in a distraught voice, " He'll do it again and again until he's caught. Every time he hit me Nick I could feel the hate in him and it was powerful." Her hands went to her neck as she quietly said, " And when his thick fingers wrapped around my neck, he enjoyed it…immensely. He'll kill again Nick to make his point." Nick looked her waiting for her to finish. "I shouldn't have lived." she whispered hopelessly.

"Sara no," he said as he reached out to touch her. She pulled away again and said despondently, "Please leave me alone," her eyes begging him, "I need to be alone right now."

Nick stood slowly and gazed down at her, "Fine if that's how you want it Sara but I'm not leaving the apartment. I will leave you alone in the bathroom but I will not leave you. I'm here for you Sara: to listen if you need me too or if you need someone to hold you. I'm here. I promise." With that said he turned and quietly shut the door.

Sara pulled her knees to her chest and rested her weary head on top of them. Part of her was angry that he wouldn't give her space. But the other part of her was relieved because she didn't want to be alone. For the first time in her life she felt scared. Scared that this maniac was going to kill innocent women because of her. She was also scared of what would happen if he ever got a chance to get close to her. She shut her eyes and let the tears come.

Nick went out and sat on the couch. He understood better then anyone what she was going through. But he also understood Sara and her need for independence. He would give her space. He just hoped that she would lean on him when the time came. He knew what it was like to handle things alone. It sucked. He could hear her sobs echo sadly down the hallway. He turned the television on with the volume turned off. He wanted it to be able to hear just in case she called him. He gave her an hour, fighting the urge to get up and go to her the whole time.

Sara must have fallen asleep because she woke to Nick gently stroking her cheek and calling her name. Her eyes fluttered open and she gave him a small grin when he said, "Hey sleeping beauty. I figured you'd rather sleep in your bed then here on the bathroom floor." "Thanks Nick," she said sitting up and stretching her sore muscles. He held out his good hand to her and she took it as he helped her up off the floor.

"I didn't mean to push you away Nick," she said still holding onto his hand. "I'm just use to handling things by myself," she finished looking up into his handsome face. "I need to give you your space, I realize that. It's just that I hate seeing you upset." A smile began to creep across her face as she looked at him. "I could use a hug right now." she said quietly. His gorgeous face lit up in his trademark smile as he opened his arm to her.

Sara nestled herself against his broad chest careful not to hit his sling. She wrapped her arms around his waist and snuggled her face against his neck. He felt warm and safe and he smelled absolutely wonderful, that heady mix of cologne and of Nick himself. His arms seemed like the perfect place to forget, at least for a little while.

Nick felt her press hers body securely against his. He sighed inwardly, relieved that she was not shutting him out. He breathed in the unique scent that belonged to only her. His hand absently ran up and down her back. It hesitated slightly when it reached the cool skin near her shoulder. He slowed his journey, enjoying the feel of her smooth, soft skin. His fingertips lingered for a while as they glided back and forth. Finally they continued their way up her neck to slide softly through her silky hair. He couldn't help but smile when he heard her sigh as he gently massaged the back of her head.

As Nick's fingers ran across her skin, her hands began a quest of their own. He had put on a tank top earlier and her fingers sought the hem. Ever so slowly they crept underneath the fabric until they found what they deeply desired: Nick's warm skin. She heard herself sigh as his wonderful fingers touched the back of her head tenderly but what she was really expressing was her joy at finally touching his naked flesh. She let her fingers travel slowly, enjoying the sensation of the hard muscles of his back.

She found herself nuzzling his neck. It was as if she had no control, as her tongue darted out of her mouth to taste him. She felt his body go rigid and a small guttural sound escaped his lips. The sound of Nick's moan sent a hot wave of desire through her body. She continued her exploration of his neck with her mouth, slowly licking, kissing and nipping her way up to his ear. She softly blew with a heated breath and felt his body shutter in response. He hissed her name through his clenched teeth.

Sara's hands traveled back down the V of his body and circled around to his chest. She felt his chest hair tickled the palms of her hands. She made her way up to his nipples circling them slowly. She could hear his breath quicken and felt his hand untangle itself for her hair. He slid it hurriedly down her back to grip her ass.

She nibbled on his earlobe and moaned lustfully as he began to caress her rear end. She kissed her way across his strong jaw. She stopped just below his lips and looked up at him. She was taken back by the fiery look of lust in his eyes. "Sara," he growled as she felt his hand snake up inside her shirt. It came to rest, gripping her side just below her breast; she felt the gentle glide of his thumb as it brushed the underside of her breast. She closed her eyes and had to stifle the moan that threatened to pass from her lips. She felt the burning heat of desire begin to settle at her center.

Nick and Sara's eyes locked as they watched the intensity of the fire between them ignite into a roaring flame. Nick tried to control his raging passion. He knew if she didn't stop her fingers from stroking his chest, he was going to take her then and there, regardless of their injuries. The passionate look of hunger on her beautiful face was driving him crazy. How his hand ached to cup her breast in his hand and run his thumb across her hardened nub. He wanted to hear her moan his name. His need for her was too strong and he would never be able to hold back all the passion and desire he felt for her. He did not want to hurt her and was afraid he would. When they made love for the first time, he wanted them to be physically and mentally ready.

Nick pulled away from her, gasping when he felt one of her hands on his bulging erection. "Nick," she moaned at the loss of his body. "Sara, As much as want you right now, we can't." "Nick we can. We'll just be careful," she groaned stepping close to him and running her hands up his chest. "Baby, you've got to quit touching me. I can't think straight." Nick said stepping away from her again. "Isn't that the point," she said seductively moving toward him with a glimmer in her eye. She had him backed up against a wall.

"Sara listen to me," he demanded. Her eyes lost some of their lustfulness at the sound of his tone. She stepped away from him. "Darlin, you need to understand. I want to be able to touch you without hurting you. I want to be able to put both of my hands on that sexy body of yours. I want to be able to take your clothes off one piece at a time. I don't want either one of us incapacitated. There is so much I want to do to you and I want to know you're thoroughly enjoying it. Do you understand?" he asked.

Sara shook her head yes slowly and gave him a wicked grin. "You want to ravish me thoroughly and completely and you want to do it right the first time. And just so you know the same goes for you Mr. Stokes. I have some incredible plans for that fine body of yours." "Damn woman why do I have a feeling we won't be leaving the bedroom for a least 3 days."

Sara laughed huskily as she slid up against his body. "Baby that sexy smile of yours won't leave your face, guaranteed." " Miss Sidle I think I am going to enjoy this brazen side of you." Sara grinned and pulled his face down close to hers and whispered, "Oh I think you're going to be in for one hell of a surprise at just how brazen I can be Nick." She laced her fingers through his hair and kissed him passionately.

The sound of her phone ringing broke them apart. Nick glanced at his watch and said, "Who would be calling you this late at night? It's after 11:00." Sara shrugged and headed to the phone in the living room. "Hello?" No answer. "Hello?" No answer. Sara felt a sinking sensation in her stomach. It was him. She quickly slammed down the phone.

Nick could tell by her reaction that the call had upset her. "Sara who was it?" "Wrong number." "Sara," he said stepping close to her and grasping her arm. "What did they say?" "Nothing, nobody was there." she said softly. "But you think it was him?" She looked up at him surprised at how intuitive he was. "No…Yes…I don't know. It was just a feeling I got that's all. This whole case is just getting to me. I can't think clearly."

Nick nodded and released her. "Warrick said he'd call tomorrow and let us know if we can come in and take a look at the evidence." "Really? It would make me feel a lot better being involved. I feel so discombobulated right now. I hate feeling this way."

Nick nodded his head in agreement. "I think we both need to get some sleep and talk about it some more tomorrow. I realize this thing between us is only adding to the situation. I don't want to push you into anything you're not ready for, Sara."

She smiled at him and his thoughtfulness. " I'm glad you're here Nick. And you're not pushing me into anything I don't want. I know without a doubt I want you Nick." She reached out and grabbed his hand and brought it up to her lips. She gently kissed the palm of his hand and then laid it against her cheek as she whispered, " I really, really want you Nick." His sexy smile graced hishandsome face as his thumb caressed her cheek. "I'm glad to hear that Sara cause I really, really want you too. Now I think I should sleep on the couch so all temptation can be avoided. Don't you agree?"

"Nick we're both adults I think we can handle sleeping in the same bed." Sara huffed. "Sara," he said leaning down and breathing into her ear, "I don't think I can lie in the same bed with you and sleep." He gave her a quick kiss on her earlobe and looked at her. She sighed and said, "You're right. I'm just too damn sexy," she said with a smirk. He laughed and gave her a playful swat on the butt. "Hey you brute! Let me get you a blanket and a pillow."

She returned a few minutes later with the items in hand. He stretched out on the couch barely fitting, as she placed the blanket over him. "Are you sure you're all right. The couch isn't big enough for you." "I'm fine Sara. I can sleep anywhere. Now go to bed." "Fine. If you need anything give me a shout. Sweet dreams Nick." she said bending down and giving him a gentle kiss on the lips. "Night Sara," he whispered.

He heard her door shut and closed his eyes. He was definitely going to have some very sweet dreams about a certain brunette with her luscious lips and sexy, long legs.

Sara climbed into bed and sighed. She knew he was right but she liked feeling him close to her. She just liked the feel of Nick period. The man was too sexy for his own good. She rolled over onto her side and closed her eyes. She hoped visions of a naked Nick would fill her head and not those of a murdered girl. She had a feeling it was going to be a very long night.


	8. Chapter 8

Thanks for all my great reviews so far! They keep me motivated to write. So please keep reviewing. Thanks!

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Chapter 8

Nick moved for about the twentieth time, trying to get comfortable on Sara's couch. He had dosed on and off throughout the night never falling into a peaceful sleep. As he stretched his cramped legs out he heard a strange noise. He glanced around Sara's living, seeing nothing unusual he slowly sat up. The pain in his shoulder throbbed uncomfortably. Then he heard it again. His ears strained trying to figure out what it was. He looked down at his watch. It read 5:30 a.m.. He stood stretching his sore muscles. He heard the sound again, this time much more distinguishable, a whimper.

Nick made his way down the hall to Sara's bedroom door. He could clearly her pleas now. Her scared voice whispering, "No… stop… please… stop…no". Her words tore at him. He eased the door opened and stepped into the room.

He watched her as she thrashed back and forth on her bed struggling against her invisible attacker. Her blankets lay tangled at her feet. She wore a pair of sleeping shorts and a tank top, which had ridden half way up her torso leaving a swath of creamy white skin visible to Nick's eyes.

The sound of her saying his name caused him to quickly avert his wandering eyes up to her tortured, sleeping face. "Nick," she pleaded again, "Help me please. Don't let him hurt me, Nick." He stepped closer to the bed, his heart breaking just a little bit more. "I promise Sara. He'll never hurt you again. I swear on my life," he whispered as he bent down to gently wake her up.

The touch of a hand on her arm sent Sara heart rate into overdrive. She stifled a scream as she shot up out of bed. She felt a hand grab her arm and a voice say, "Sara you're okay. It's me Nick." She struggled for a few seconds and then relaxed slightly when she realized it was in fact Nick. She slumped back against her pillow breathing heavily and fighting the wave of nausea that flowed threw her body.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up," she said as she looked up at him. "It's okay Sara. Are you all right?" She avoided his eyes as she shook her head yes. He reached out and softly stroked her cheek. She turned slowly and met his concerned eyes. "Do you have these nightmares often?" he asked. She looked away again fighting for control of her voice. "I…" she started then stopped. She knew she needed to tell him the truth. "I use to right after it happened, night after night I'd wake up screaming. It was awful. I had to fight myself to regain control back over my life. I couldn't let him win. Eventually the nightmares became rare occurrences. But I still have them once in a while when a case from work reminds me of some horrid detail, a sound, a smell a touch. But this maniac has brought it all back, everything." She looked up at Nick as a tear slipped down her face. "It's like he's right here on top of me and I can't fight him. I hate that feeling. I've worked so hard not to feel like that. But all it took was one instant when he had me pinned against the floor and it's all come back again." She stopped and looked down at her hands fighting the need to throw herself into his arms and let him comfort her.

He silently watched her struggle with some internal battle. Because he had been through it, he knew all to well what she was fighting, the need to lean on someone else, and the desire to let someone else take care of it so for once in her life she could breathe and not feel the burden of the immense guilt. "Sara," he said gently pulling her up into a sitting position. He reached out and cupped her face. "This time it's different." She looked at him confused. He continued, "You called for me Sara in your dream. I'm here this time. You're not alone. I'm here to hold you and keep you save. I promise." She eyes cleared with realization. He was there in her dream. He was coming to save her. He was right; she didn't have to fight alone anymore.

Nick watched as her eyes filled with tears when she understood what he was saying to her. She took a deep breath and shuttered. "Nick," she quietly choked out. "I'm here honey. I'm not going to let anything happened to you. I promise. You're not alone anymore." He gathered her in his arm as best as he could and let her cry.

His arms felt wonderful. For the first time in her life she didn't feel so utterly alone. She knew the man that Nick was: kind, caring and very giving. But she knew deep down that he would never completely understand what she was going through. That she would never be able to give herself fully to him or any man. She was broken. Nick deserved a woman who was whole and who could love him openly and without reserve. She would never be that woman. She would take what he offered her now because she needed it, needed him. But she had to make him understand their developing relationship could only go so far. She would have to talk to him before they took it to the next level. She knew sex could confuse things but it could also make life that much more enjoyable. And with him she had no doubt it would be incredible. She wanted him more then she had wanted anyone before. She was tired of denying herself happiness. She knew they would make each other happy at least for a little while.

Sara gave Nick a gentle squeeze before slowly pulling out of his arms. "This has become a habit, me crying, you holding me. I have never cried so much in front of another person." He gave her an easy smile and said, "I'm just glad you feel like you can cry in front of me. But your secret's save with me. I won't let anyone know I got to see the vulnerable side of Sara Sidle and lived to tell about it." "Nick," she playfully growled. "You need anything?" he asked. "No I'm fine. Thanks." "You need to get some more sleep. It's too early to be up." Nick said as he stood up.

She looked up at him and could clearly see the lines of fatigue around his eyes. He looked exhausted. "Is the couch awful?" she asked. "I'm fine Sara" She reached out and grabbed his arm as he began to turn away. "Nick," she quietly said. He looked down at her and then at her hand gripping his arm. "Stay with me," she said. "Sara I don't think…" "Please Nick," she interrupted. "I'll sleep better knowing your close." Her beautiful brown eyes seemed to be pleading with him. "If your sure." he answered. "Positive," she said with a little grin. "All right," he said as he walked around to the other side of her bed. He lifted the covers and slid in. He lay on his back and turned his head to look at her. She was watching him.

"If you want we can sleep like we did before. You seemed comfortable that way." Sara said quietly. He looked at her for a moment noticing a blush beginning to cover her cheeks. He found it very endearing when she blushed over the smallest things. "Okay," he smiled. She smiled back. She rolled over onto her side and scooted backward until she felt his solid body up against hers. She felt him lay his arm on her hip. "Night Nick," "Thanks Sara"

Within minutes she heard his breathing change. He was fast asleep. She couldn't help but smile. She closed her eyes and thought how wonderful this would be on a nightly basis. She had never really shared her bed with man before. It had never felt right but with Nick it somehow did. She sighed to herself, feeling suddenly very confused. Somewhere along the way, everything about Nick had begun to feel right. She just didn't know how to handle it yet. Tomorrow she thought as she drifted off to sleep. I'll figure it out tomorrow.


	9. chapter 9

Chapter 9

The day flew by quickly for Sara and Nick. They ended up sleeping until after 10:00. They then ate a quick breakfast and headed out to Nick's doctor's appointment. The doctor had told him the wound looked well and in a few more days he would be able to take the sling off. After hearing the good news, Nick had decided to take her out to lunch. They had found a quiet, little Chinese restaurant down the street from the doctor's office. They had talked and laughed for over 2 hours, just enjoying one another's company. For a little while they were just Nick and Sara. After leaving the restaurant, Sara had told Nick they needed to go grocery shopping if he was going to be staying with her for the next few days. She knew she had nothing appealing for him in her cupboards.

It had taken them over an hour and a half to make they way through the store due to the fact that they had playfully bickered over just about every item they had intended to buy. They had received many curious glances from other customers as they stood in the cereal aisle debating over what was more nutritious Captain Crunch or Lucky Charms. Nick couldn't help but grin when a little old lady had stopped them and asked if they were newlyweds because she and her husband had been the same way when they had first wed. Too embarrassed to tell her otherwise, they stood there side by side with foolish grins on their faces as she had wished them luck and hoped they were blessed with a little one soon. Nick could clearly remember Sara's cheeks flaming red, as she had scooted the shopping cart quickly down the aisle ahead of him.

They had returned from their shopping adventure and put the groceries away in comfortable silence. They had a few more hours to kill before they could head into work so they had decided to watch a movie and order a pizza. The time passed swiftly and they found themselves on their way to the lab.

Nick glanced over at her as she gripped the steering wheel tightly. He knew she had gone into work mode. He had to admit he had a great time with her today. She had let down her guard and her playful side pleasantly surprised him. He had never heard her laugh so much. He had loved the sound of her laughter and the way her eyes would light up. Little by little he felt himself being pulled under. He was falling for her, seriously falling. And try as he might he couldn't get a feel as to exactly what she was feeling. He knew she wanted him. He could clearly see the desire in her eyes. But what he couldn't see was if she wanted more. He felt torn because he deeply wanted her too but he knew he would never be satisfied with having her halfway. He wanted all of her; her body as well as her heart and soul. When the time was right he would talk to her and tell her how he felt.

The sound of her sighing broke him out of his reverie. He glanced over at her and asked, "Are you going to be okay?" She smiled over at him and said, "Yeah, I'm just anxious to get back to work. But I have a feeling Grissom's not going to let us get too involved." Nick had to agree with her. If he were in Grissom's position he would not let Sara get involved. The case was too personal.

They pulled into the parking lot and sat for a minute just looking at one another. Finally Sara said, "Let's do it." They headed into the building and were warmly greeted by the security guard and the receptionist. As they walked by the girl behind the desk said, "Miss Sidle a beautiful bouquet of flowers came for you. Ms. Willows brought them down to the break room." "Thanks." Sara said. "Why is it that you seem to be getting all the flowers Sara when I was the shot trying to save you?" Nick said trying to sound hurt. " I'll send you some flowers if it will make you feel better you big baby," Sara said with a smirk. "I like roses particularly yellow." Nick said with a huge grin. Sara shook her head but she couldn't stop the smile from forming on her lips. They stopped outside the break room door and gave each other a reassuring smile. "After you sweetheart," Nick said playfully. Sara rolled her eyes and headed into the room.

Their coworkers were gathered in the room when they walked in. Greg was the first to noticed them and exclaimed, "Speak of the devil here are our favorite walking wounded now." He got out of his chair and gave Nick a pat on the back. He turned to Sara and smiled down at her. His eyes grew round when he saw the ugly bruises on her face and neck. "I thought I told you Sara, nobody can beat Rocky Balboa (the boxer), not even you." Sara couldn't help but laugh. Greg pulled her into a gentle hug and whispered in her ear, "I'm glad your okay." Sara was touched by his concern and she felt her eyes start to tear. She looked over his shoulder at Nick who gave her a comforting smile. She pulled away from Greg and smiled up at him, "Thanks Greggo." Warrick was next to sweep her up in his arms, followed by Catherine. They both told her they were glad she was okay. Hugs and handshakes were equally bestowed on Nick as well.

Grissom stood awkwardly off to the side watching the ease in which his coworkers moved with one another. He felt a pang of jealousy shoot across his chest but he shook it off. He watched as Sara turned and looked at him. She seemed to be searching his face for something, for what he wasn't sure. "I'm glad your all right Sara," he heard himself say. He watched as Nick came over and stood beside her. He shifted his gaze and said, "You too Nick".

From across the room came Catherine's' voice, "Hey Sara did you see this gorgeous bouquet of flowers someone sent you." Sara turned and gasped at the incredibly beautiful flowers in a large crystal vase sitting on a table in the corner. "Was there a card?" Sara asked. "No I couldn't find one. Looks like you have a secret admirer," Catherine said smiling at Nick who was staring at Grissom.

Sara looked at Nick out of the corner of her eye and saw him staring at their boss. Sara shook her head. The flowers couldn't be from Grissom. She just could not see him sending her 2 bouquets of flowers. It was over the top especially for him. She wondered if maybe Nick had sent them. She tried to catch his eye but he was staring at the flowers.

Nick couldn't believe that Grissom had sent her more flowers. What was he trying to prove anyway? He glanced over at Catherine and saw her smiling at him. Damn she thought he had sent them. He looked over at Warrick who gave him the same knowing look. Well they both thought he was the romantic hero sending his damsel in distress flowers. Little did they know it was their shy and meager boss making the grand romantic gestures to Nick's damsel in distress.

Nick heard Grissom clear his throat and say, "Let's get down to business and fill Nick and Sara in on what we have." As they went to take their seats around the table, Nick was so distracted by the flowers that he unwittingly pulled Sara's chair out for her. She shot him a heated look as she took her seat. The look did not go unnoticed by the rest of them. Warrick raised his eyebrow in question at Catherine who just smiled. She cast a quick glance at Grissom and saw his eyebrows furrowed together in what looked like displeasure. Greg's eyes were wide with surprise.

Catherine looked back at the two people in question. Sara's cheeks were a deep pink and she was looking down at her hands, obviously embarrassed. Nick was looking at her sheepishly and whispered, "Sorry". Catherine chuckled to herself, first the beautiful flowers and now the chair. She was going to have to keep a close eye on her two friends because it appeared they had finally seen the light and realized what everyone else already knew, they were perfect for each other.

Sara was mortified. She could feel everyone's eyes on her and Nick. She could especially feel Grissom's. She knew Nick hadn't done it on purpose. He had been the perfect gentleman the whole time he had been with her and he was still in the role, obviously forgetting he was not to do so at work in front of the others. She heard Grissom clear his throat again breaking the unbearable silence that had filled the room. She risked a glance at Catherine and was met with a knowing smile. Cath waggled her eyebrows at her and Sara could feel her face flame a brighter red. Damn Nick and his good manners.

Nick knew he was in deep shit as soon as he pulled the chair out for her. He knew how prickly Sara was about people knowing about her personal life and he knew for a fact she would not want anyone at work to know about their potential relationship. He tried to apologize but he knew he had make the situation even worse when he saw her face turn a deeper shade of red. He sat back in his chair and sighed inwardly. He shot a quick glace at Warrick and received a knowing smirk from his friend. Damn he was going to have some explaining to do.

Grissom proceeded to lay out all the facts for them. What they knew and what they didn't know. Unfortunately for Sara they didn't have a hell of a lot to work with. They knew the suspect was at least 6 foot 2 inches and that he weighed better then 200 pounds based on Sara's description. Their most promising lead was the boot print. Warrick found out that it matched a size 11 Merrill Pulse Mid Gore Tex boot. He was in the process of narrowing down how many retailers in the area sold this type of boot.

Little evidence had been pulled off the 2 victims. Greg had identified the powdery substance from both women's necks as material from latex gloves. Both substances had come from the same pair of gloves. Though both victims had been raped no semen had been found in or on either body. It appeared that he used a condom and some sort of antibacterial cleaner to wipe them off with after he was finished.

The latest victim had also managed to get some fibers under her fingernails from the ski mask as Sara had done. The fibers were still being tested. A handwriting expert was currently analyzing the message written in blood.

Doc Robbins had finished his autopsy and concluded that the same man had killed both women. The knife wounds were consistent with each other and appeared to be from the same pocketknife used by a right-handed person. Both strangulation patterns on each of the women's necks also appeared to have been made by the same set of hands. The hand size and strength used seemed to indicate the same person.

Catherine's task at the moment was to try to form a link between the two victims. Did they use the same gym, hair salon, or shop at the same stores? Where did the suspect come in contact with them? Because the binding link between the two women was the fact that they were both home alone when they were attacked. The suspect had to have known this important detail because he knew he had plenty of time to do what he needed to do. The only confusing detail was why he had come back to the first scene and attacked Sara. What they needed to do was go back to the house and go through the office more thoroughly. The suspect may have returned for a piece of evidence that he thought the victim might have had such as a receipt. If they were lucky he didn't have time to find it because Sara had walked in on him.

Sara sat back and digested everything Grissom had just said. They had some leads she just hoped they would pan out. She let out a frustrated sigh when Grissom said she and Nick could take over Catherine's task and look for the missing link between the two women. He sent Warrick and Catherine back to the first victim's house.

Sara grumbled the whole way to the lab with Nick trailing warily behind her. She opened the door and stared at the two tables filled with paperwork that consisted of the two victim's lives. "At least he's letting us help," Nick said as he stepped into the room beside her. She gave him a menacing look and pressed her lips together scowling. "About before," he started. She raised her hand in warning, "Forget about it. What's done is done. You pulling out my chair only added to their enjoyment of the situation because I think they think you sent me those flowers." She said turning to face him. She raised her eyebrows waiting for him to respond. "I," he started, "No I didn't." he said sheepishly, "I just assumed they were from Grissom." He finished meeting her eyes. She scowled even more and said, "No way. I thought maybe that the first one was but the second one is just overkill, not his style." "So Grissom has a style does he?" Nick said in a bitter tone. She locked eyes with him and coolly said, "I am not going to get into this with you again." She turned away from him and stalked over to one of the tables.

Nick sighed and said, "I'm sorry Sara, really. If you don't think Gris sent them then who?" "Greg?" she said over her shoulder. "Greg? Yeah maybe if he thinks he might have a shot now that your guard is down." "My guard's down huh?" she said looking over her shoulder at him. "Yeah, you know going through such a traumatic situation and being rescued by a handsome hero. Your head is in the clouds thinking about various ways you can thank your hero." He said with a smirk as he moved slowly toward hers. She turned around and looked at him trying to fight the sinking sensation he made her feel when he gazed at her that way. "Oh so you think I'm distracted thinking of various ways to get you naked?" she said. His eyebrows shot up at her words. "Naked? Did I say anything about thanking me naked? Exactly what are you thinking about Miss Sidle?" he said with a wicked grin as he stopped directly in front of her.

He leaned over and whispered hotly in her ear, "If you would like to thank me while were both naked that's fine. A hero would never tell his fair maiden no." " You…" she growled as she tried to push him away. He quickly grabbed her wrists and held then against his chest. Her beautiful brown eyes blazed with heat. "You know that lip of yours is looking much better. In fact I think it's begging to be kissed," he said huskily. She watched in a heated daze as his mouth descended onto hers.

The feel of his mouth against hers made her blood begin to boil. She rubbed her hands seductively up and down his chest. She felt him growl against her mouth as he deepened the kiss. His lips and tongue began a leisurely seduction of her mouth. She let him lead as she slowly followed his intimate movements. The feel of his hands against the skin on her back brought her quickly back to reality. She pulled away from him reluctantly and murmured, " You make it to hard for me to stay mad at you. You're just too damn irresistible. "Thank god you think so Sara because I don't want you ever mad at me. I am sorry about before." He said sincerely. "I know you didn't mean it. You're just a gentleman through and through and I would never want to change that about you Nick." He smiled down at her and caressed her cheek lovingly. The sound of a beeper going off caused them to jump apart and whirl toward the door. Grissom stood there with an extremely displeased look on his face.

Grissom looked down at the annoying beeper and scowled. He tried to hide his embarrassment at being caught spying on them. But when he had arrived outside the door he had become frozen to his spot as he watched their intimate display of affection. To say he was shocked was an understatement. Never in his wildest dreams had he thought that Sara would fall for Nick Stokes. He thought she knew better, obviously not. From the kiss he had just witnessed it appeared they were beyond the early stages of a relationship. Just the way they whispered and touched one another it seemed like they were involved in a very serious affair. He wondered how long it had been going on? And why he hadn't noticed it before? He looked back up at them and was relieved to see their embarrassment clearly etched on their faces. "I want to see the both of you in my office before shift is over." he said sternly. He held up the beeper, "I have to call Brass. I'll be back and I expect to see the two of you as far apart from one another as possible." With that said he marched down the hall.

Nick ran his hand over his face and nervously looked over at Sara. She was staring at the empty doorway. Nick moved so that he stood in front of her. "You okay?" he asked tentatively. "Yeah, he already suspected something anyway. Now I don't have to tell him." "You were going to tell him what exactly?" Nick asked confused. She smiled up at him and said, " That my sexy coworker and I were going to test the bounds beyond our friendship to see if we could find ourselves a little bit of happiness." Nick's smile widened as he said, "You were going to tell Grissom that." "Well it sounds a lot better then Nick and I decided to screw each other senseless." Sara smirked. "Well yeah but I really like the idea of us screwing each of senseless." He said with a twinkle in his eye. "Nick," Sara sighed, "Remember what Grissom said. We need to stay away from one another while we're at work. So you need to move to the far side of that table and I'll work on this table." "Fine Sara but once we're outside of work all bets are off."

They smiled at one another from across the tables and got to work. Two hours later Sara sighed with frustration. They had yet to find a link between the two women. She straightened up and stretched the knots out of her back. "I could do that for you," Nick said with a grin. "Don't I wish," she replied with a grin of her own. Just then Grissom flew into the room. "There's been another murder," he said hurriedly looking from one face to the other. "I don't think it's a good idea that you go to the scene Sara," Grissom said. "But…" he said over her protests, "I know I can't keep you here either." She gave him a relieved look and glanced over a Nick. His face was full of worry. The situation was beginning to get out of control and Sara was right in the middle of it.

"Let's go," she said to the two men watching her. She knew if she stopped to think everything would catch up to her and her world would begin to spin out of control. She had to keep herself on the outside. She couldn't let him touch her because if she did she was afraid she might lose herself completely.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. I just enjoy writing about them.

Chapter 10

Sara could feel the eyes of her co-workers on her as she stared helplessly at the awful scene before her. She could not take her eyes off the message written in the victim's blood.

******_R U SCREAMING SARA?_**

**_U WILL B SOON!_**

****

The acidy taste of bile rose up in the back of her throat. She gagged trying to get it to retreat. She willed herself not to throw up, not in front of her friends. She felt the comforting warmth of someone's hand on the small of her back. She knew without looking that it was Nick. He made slow gentle circles and she could feel herself relaxing. It surprised her how reassuring his touch was.

Sara heard him whisper, "Are you all right?" She turned and met his worried eyes. She nodded her head slowly. She turned back to look at the dead girl. She shuttered thinking about the poor girl's tragic and horrifying murder. Everything appeared to be the same: the knife wounds and the strangulation marks are her neck. Sara felt a wave of sadness descend upon her. This girl had been murdered to send her a message. The killer wanted her and he was waiting.

A small sob escaped her mouth as she turned and rushed out of the room. Her friends watched her go, helpless to do anything to make it better. "Nick," Catherine said quietly, " You go." He nodded and left the room without a word.

Catherine met Grissom's concerned eyes and she knew what he was thinking. The situation was out of control and Sara was in grave danger. A maniac had targeted her and he was going to keep on killing until he got what he wanted and that was Sara.

Catherine and Grissom turned at the sound of Warrick's heated voice, "She needs protection and she needs it now." Grissom nodded in agreement and said, "Brass is already working on it." "We need to find this guy and fast," Warrick growled, "Sara feels responsible for these killings. It's written all over her face. If he keeps it up I don't know what it will do to her. You know how she gets."

"Believe me we will catch this SOB and we're going to nail his ass to the wall," Grissom said venomously. His team nodded in agreement. "We have a job to do. Let's do it right." Grissom said as he bent down to take samples from the victim.

Nick found Sara out of the back porch crying. He went to her drawing her to him with his good arm. She wrapped her arms around his waist and sobbed into the crock of his neck. Nick rubbed her back and whispered words of reassurance quietly in her ear. She finally stopped crying and looked up at him with red-rimmed eyes. "It's my fault Nick. She's dead because of me."

He reached up and gently cupped her face and said, "Sara, honey, your wrong. If it weren't you, he would have fixated on someone else. But we both know he picked the wrong girl to mess with. You're stronger then him and a hell of a lot smarter. We're going to find something to nail him with, I promise. We'll bring him down. You're a fighter Sara. You can do this. You're the strongest person I know." The sincerity in his voice and in his eyes overwhelmed her.

"Nick," she choked out, "I don't know if I can do this." "Baby you can and you will. We're all here for you. You're not alone. I promise I will not let anything happen to you. I'm here****for you." His beautiful brown eyes swam with emotion as he looked at her. "Nick," she breathed as she brought her hands up to his face and pulled him closer as she gently kissed his lips.

Nick lost himself in her kiss. Emotion after emotion raced through his body. He was terrified for her. If anything happened to her he wasn't sure what he would do. She had become the center of his world. He knew at that exact moment as her hands gently caressed his face and her lips slid sensuously over his, that he loved her. He loved her with his whole heart and soul. He desperately wanted to tell her but he knew it was not the right time.

Sara pulled away slowly from Nick and met his eyes. The emotion she saw clearly etched in his eyes, surprised her. And it scared her. She didn't want Nick to love her, not like this, not in the middle of this hellacious situation. She couldn't give him what he needed, not now not ever. "Nick," she started. But he must have read something in her eyes because he quickly said, "Let's head back inside and see what we can do to help."

Sara nodded in agreement. He held the door open with his coat sleeve and followed her inside. His heart broke just a little bit when he watched her retreat from him emotionally. For an instant he saw something in her eyes but she quickly put her wall up. She was still unwilling to let him in all the way. He was a patient man. He just hoped she would eventually learn to trust him with her heart. He had too much at stake to let her push him away. He protected the people that he loved and he would die if need be to protect her.

* * *

TBC……..Sorry it was so short. I have been extremely busy. Please review. It helps to motivate me. Thanks!

Also thanks to those of you who took the time to read my story and review it. It makes all the difference in the world when you get a great review. So thanks to those of you who like my story!!!


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

The team spent over 4 hours searching and collecting evidence from the victim's apartment. Sara was exhausted and very frustrated by the time they returned to the lab. It seemed that the killer had left them little to work with yet again.

Sara and Nick had spent all of their time going through her paper records. They knew there was a common link between the murdered women but they hadn't found it yet. The murders were not random. They had been planned. The killer had to have staked out each of the victims' homes before hand. He knew the easiest way in and out. He was familiar with the set up of each of the residences.

Sara paced back and forth as Nick laid out the woman's receipts, bills, letters etc. on a table next to the other two victims' tables. "What are we missing?" Sara growled, "He's seen them all somewhere and followed them home, studied their daily patterns. But where?"

"Sara, we'll figure it out. Las Vegas is a big city. There's lots of places he could have seen them. But we're going to narrow it down. It's what we do best." Nick said trying to calm her down.

"But we don't have any time, damnit! He's out there now planning some other innocent woman's death. I can't let it happen again." Sara snapped.

Nick took a step toward her and she held up her hand. "Please don't try and comfort me. It's not what I need right now." "Fine," he said quietly, "I'll give you some time alone. I'm going to go see if Greg as found out anything on that hair sample Warrick found. I'll be back."

Sara groaned as she watched Nick head out the door. She hadn't meant to push him away. She was tired and scared. She sat down in a chair, closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. She just wanted this nightmare to end.

She stood slowly to begin looking through the paperwork again when her cell phone rang. "Sidle," she answered. "Sara," a voice hissed. She felt her blood run cold and her knees go weak. It was him.

"You Son of a Bitch!" she cried.

"So you know who this is. Good. Did I make you cry earlier out on the porch? It was my intention."

Sara felt her heart rate accelerate. He had been there, at the crime scene, watching! Oh my god!

"We're going to catch you, you Bastard!" Sara growled.

"Not before I have you Sara." He laughed.

Sara scrambled out the door, looking for anyone to help her. The bile rose up in her throat. She wanted to scream.

"I have dreams about you Sara. My hands sliding around that long slender throat of yours and squeezing as you thrash underneath me. Those other girls were so unworthy but you my sweet, I will savor you right down to your last gasp of air."

"You sick son of a bitch. I will stop you if it's the last thing I do!" Sara screamed into the phone.

At the sound of the yelling Nick and Catherine stuck their heads out of a lab's door. Other people were doing the same.

Sara stood there clutching her cell phone to her ear. Her eyes were wild and her face was extremely pale. Her whole body was trembling.

"Is your knight in shining armor close by Sara? Will he be there to rescue you again? Or will he be flat on his back on an autopsy table?" he laughed.

"Bastard! Don't you dare!" Sara screamed hysterically.

Nick flew down the hall toward her, his stomach rolled violently. It was him.

"Will you miss his big brown eyes, his slow Texan drawl? Will you miss your Cowboy and the way he makes you moan? I'm sure he prefers sleeping in your bed. The couch was definitely too small for him"

Sara's eyes went wide with horror. He knew. But how? Her mind raced frantically, searching for an answer.

Nick watched as Sara's face filled with terror. Her eyes locked onto his for a moment and he saw the depth of her fear embedded in there. He tried to grab the phone from her but slapped his hand away.

"By the way Sara, did you like the 2 bouquets of flowers I sent you?" the killer laughed wickedly.

Sara screamed in revulsion as she threw her cell phone furiously against a wall. She harshly pushed Nick out of her way and ran down the hall.

Sara raced into the break room, startling Greg as he pulled a bag of popcorn out of the microwave. He turned to face her and gaped at her wild appearance. Her eyes were wide and unfocused, her skin pasty and pale and she was breathing heavily. She moved quickly toward the vase of flowers, picking it up and hurling it fiercely against the wall, screaming "Bastard!" Greg reeled back in shock. He had never seen Sara so upset.

He watched as Sara turned, her eyes slowly registering his presence. She looked at him with defeated eyes and collapsed to the floor in tears. Greg stood there froze for a moment. He glanced over his shoulder and realized he was the only one there to help her. He moved to her quickly and gathered her in his arms. He sat there as the floor as she clung to him helplessly, crying her eyes out. He soothed her as best as he could. He could feel her vulnerability and it broke his heart.

Everyone stood there stunned for a moment. Nick rubbed his throbbing shoulder where Sara had pushed him. He cursed silently to himself for taking his sling off earlier in the evening as pain raced down his arm. Catherine bent down and picked up the phone. It was smashed. Grissom stormed down the hall yelling, "What the hell is going on?" Warrick was right behind him.

The sound of breaking glass sent them scurrying down the hall toward the break room. As they entered they found a sobbing Sara wrapped up in Greg's arms on the floor. He was gently rocking her back and forth, stroking her hair and saying, "It's all right Sara. It's going to be okay," over and over again. A few feet away from them was the crystal vase, broken into a hundred pieces and the flowers scattered across the floor.

Greg raised his eyes and met Nick's worried ones. Nick gave his friend a small smile letting him know it was okay that he held Sara. Greg's eyes flashed with relief. No one said anyone as Sara continued to cry. Finally Nick came forward and bent down beside them. He gently laid his hand on her head and quietly said, " Sara, honey it's okay. You're not alone."

Sara's crying slowly stopped as Nick continued to talk to her. She turned slowly to look up at him and hopelessly whispered, "Nick". "Darlin' I'm right here." he whispered back. She slowly crawled out of Greg's arms and moved to Nick. He helped her up and she swiftly pulled his body up against hers. She took his face in both of her hands and gently glided her fingers across his face as if she were trying to memorize all of his features.

The others watched in fascination as Sara whispered Nick's name again and slowly drew his face down for a long sweet kiss. Grissom turned his head away. He couldn't look at the display of deep affection Nick and Sara had for one other. Sara wasn't his star anymore. She had finally moved on. He felt Catherine's eyes on him. He looked over at her as she gave him a sad smile. He returned it. His chance was gone.

He turned back to look at the couple. Nick held her securely in his arms and she snuggled firmly against him. "Nick why don't you take Sara home." Grissom said. Suddenly Sara pulled out of Nick's arms and stammered wildly, "No! We can't go there. He's been there. He's listened to us. He sent the flowers. He knows too much." She turned and grasped Nick's arm, her eyes filled with panic, "He's been listening Nick, to us, he's heard what we've said to each other. The bastard knows everything Nick." Tears began to stream down Sara's face again. Nick pulled her up against him. He looked at his friends' shocked faces.

Catherine was the first to take action. "Let me call Brass." she said as she headed out the door. Greg moved next and took Sara's cell phone from Grissom's hand. "Let me see if I can track where he was calling from." Warrick walked over to where Nick and Sara stood. He placed his hands on both of his friends' backs and said with conviction, "This guy's ass is ours. I promise Sara." She gave him a grateful smile. He turned and headed out the door telling Grissom, "I'll be working on the hair sample if you need me."

Grissom stood there uncomfortably for a moment before he said, "Sara I'll need you to write down everything you can remember from your conversation." She looked over at him with sad eyes and nodded her head. "Nick you stay here with her." Nick met Grissom's eyes. "Take care of her Nick." Nick could read the silent message Grissom was sending him. He was saying she was his now and he wasn't going to get in the way. Nick nodded his head in understanding and said sincerely, "I swear on my life I will." Grissom watched as Sara turned to look at him. Their eyes locked for a moment before he gave her a remorseful smile and silently left the room.

Nick gently led Sara to the couch and pulled her down next to him. He looked at her and had never seen her look so defeated. "Sara are okay?" he asked. She shook her head no. He took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. She stared at their joined hands and felt the tears begin to fall again. She looked up at him and whispered, " He told me he was going to take you away from me. He was going to kill you Nick." Her breath hitched as she tried to continue. "I can't let him hurt you Nick. If anything happened to you because of me I couldn't live with myself."

Nick gripped her hand tightly and fiercely said, " Don't even think like that. He's not going to get to me and he's never going to touch you. I won't let that happen. I won't let him hurt you anymore Sara." He pulled her into his arms and held her. After awhile he urged her to put her head in his lap to try and sleep. Before he knew it she had fallen into a restless sleep. He stroked her hair and gazed down at her beautiful face. He felt his eyes fill up with tears as he whispered, "I love you Sara so damn much. I swear on my life I will protect you. I need you darlin'. You're my happiness." He wiped at his eyes and for the first time in a long while he felt the grip of helplessness pulling him under. But he realized this time was different. This time he wasn't alone. He had Sara and she was all the strength he needed.

TBC


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Nick woke slowly to someone gently shaking him. He blinked a couple of times disoriented as to where he was. The unsmiling face of Warrick greeted him. "We've got a problem." Warrick said quietly. Nick glanced down at a sleeping Sara in his lap. He ran his hand softly across her hair. He sighed with displeasure at the thought of waking her up. "Let her sleep," Warrick continued, "She doesn't need to hear this." Nick nodded and as gently as possible he removed Sara's head from his lap and stood up with a groan.

Nick followed Warrick to Grissom's office where Catherine, Brass, Greg and Grissom waited. He looked at all their solemn faces and braced himself for the news. Brass cleared his throat and said, "We found a listening device in the bouquet of flowers in Sara's apartment." "Shit," Nick swore. "It doesn't appear that anyone as been in the apartment though." Brass said.

Greg then spoke up and said, "It gets better." Nick turned and looked at him. " I traced the phone he was using when he called tonight. He was using the victim's cell phone." Greg said holding the said phone in his hand. "How did you get it?" Nick asked incredulously. "He was sitting outside in Sara's Denali when he called. We found the phone lying on her front seat."

Nick reeled back in shock. "Jesus Christ. The SOB was sitting right outside. He's god damn playing with us. Probably laughing his ass off. Jesus Christ! What the hell are we going to do? We need to get Sara some place safe, now!" he said, his voice becoming louder with each word.

"Nick," Grissom started, "We realize the seriousness of the situation. However I think it's best we keep Sara out where he can see her." Fury filled Nick's face as he growled, "Like hell it's best! You will not put Sara's life on the line to catch this maniac!"

"Nick," Grissom began before Nick cut him off. "No way man! End of discussion! Do you hear me Grissom. You will not put her in danger!" Nick roared. Catherine stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"What's going on?" a voice from the doorway asked. All heads turned to see a very exhausted Sara standing there. When no one answered her question she asked, "Put who in danger?" Silence filled the room as Sara's eyes found Nick's. "Nick?" she asked with a tense voice. "Sara," he said as he began walking towards her with pleading eyes.

"No Nick! You tell me now! What's happened?" When Nick didn't answer right away, her eyes traveled across her friends to land on Grissom. She met his blue eyes with a steely glare. "Well?" she demanded. He hesitated for just a second before answering.

"There was a listening device in your flowers. And…" He watched Sara's shoulders tense. "He used the victim's cell phone to call you. He was sitting out in the parking lot in your Denali when he called."

Grissom watched her face blanch as she grabbed onto the back of a chair in front of her. Nick was by her side in an instant. "Sara sit down please," he begged as she tried to escape his caring hands. "I'm fine," she said angrily but sat down never the less. Everyone quietly watched her for a moment. Unable to take the silence she asked, "So what's our plan?"

"What?' Nick practically shouted, "You're in too much danger. You need to stay out of sight for a few days." She turned her head and her livid eyes landed on him. "I will not hide from him! You already know that Nick." "Sara," he pleaded placing his hand on her shoulder. She stood up and rounded on him. Her eyes flared with passion as she spoke, "I will fight him. He will not beat me!" Nick could clearly see the meaning behind her words, though the others couldn't.

He ran his hand through his hair in exasperation. He eyes met her obstinate brown ones and he sighed. "Fine," he said. He stepped forward and cupped the side of her face with his hand and quietly said, "But I want you to know I don't like it at all!" She gave him a grateful smile and brought her hand up to cover his. She whispered, "Thank you."

Everyone watched their exchange in silence. Each happy that Nick and Sara had finally realized their feeling for one other but at the same time they felt bittersweet about the situation that had brought them together.

After a few moments Sara turned to Grissom and said, "So?" Grissom looked at her and then at Nick. Nick slowly nodded his head in concession. "Okay, I think we've learned his way of monitoring his victims movements- the listening device. I think it is a fair assumption to say that is what he was going back for when Sara interrupted him. I'm fairly certain he removed the device from the other victims' homes. Cath and Warrick I want you back at the first Vic's house. Find it. If need be we'll search the other residences too. Greg, I want to know where the listening device came from. Did he buy it locally? Did he make it? I want answers ASAP!"

Everyone headed out the door except Nick, Sara and Brass. Grissom turned to them and said, "I want you two to go with Brass. He's going to take you shopping and then to a safe house." Nick's shoulders sagged with relief and he gave Grissom a thankful look. Sara, however, flew into a rage. "What! she demanded. "I'm not going into hiding!"

Grissom shook his head. "I'm not asking you too. Both you and Nick are still hurt. You need to focus your energy on getting better. You will be no good to me or the team if you're not up to your full potential." He cut her off before she could argue. "Sara," he said gently placing his hands on her shoulders, "We're all worried about you. Whether you admit it or not, your life is in danger possibly Nick's too. You need to realize the seriousness of this situation. You need to be able to think clearly with your head. And your body needs to be able to defend itself if need be. Right now you're running on pure emotion. You need to find yourself Sara. Do you understand?"

Sara held his earnest blue eyes for a long moment. She sighed in frustration but slowly nodded her head in agreement. "I understand." she said softly. She felt Nick take her hand and she squeezed it affectionately. Grissom turned to Brass and said,"Everything's set?"Brass smiled and said, " Yeah I got them the honeymoon suite at the Mirage. Everything's paid for by the city of Vegas."

"What?' both Sara and Nick said in unison. "It's just one night so relax and enjoy." Brass said with a chuckle. He handed them a cell phone and said, "Use this one to check in with us. Grissom and I have the number. Alright you lucky newlyweds lets hit the road so you can enjoy that wonderful room." Sara's cheeks flamed red as she stuttered, " Nick and I aren't … I mean we won't … I mean well maybe…" she hesitated when she met Nick's amused eyes. She glanced at Brass and Grissom who were both trying to hide their smiles. "Men!' Sara fumed as she stormed out the door.

The 3 guys burst out laughing. "She's so damn cute when she gets embarrassed," Brass chuckled. "I know," said Nick with a goofy grin on his face. "Man you've got it bad, Stokes," Brass said with a grin. "I know man but I can't help it. She has absolutely no idea how irresistible she is." Nick turned to Grissom and said, "Sorry." "It's all right Nick. You will be able to give her something I never could." Nick looked at him expectantly. "Yourself. You're a good man Nick and she deserves to be happy and loved. You'll give her both." Nick looked surprised by Grissom's words. He held out his hand and Grissom took it. "Thanks. It means a lot that you are okay with us being together." Grissom smiled and said, "You better got find Miss Determined before she goes and takes over Greg's job." "Yeah you're right," Nick said as he hurried out the door.

Brass looked at Grissom for a moment and said, "That was very noble of you. You gave her up without a fight." Grissom sighed and turned away. He sat down at his desk and looked up at Brass and said, "It was time to let her go." "Nick will take good care of her Gil. He loves her." Brass said thoughtfully. "I know that's why it doesn't hurt some much." Brass gave him a sad smile and headed out the door. Grissom closed his eyes for a moment.

His cell phone rang and he flipped it open, "Grissom." " We found it," Catherine's happy voice sang through the phone. "Great job Cath. Bring it in. We've got a bastard to nail." He closed the phone and smiled. This SOB was going down, hard.

* * *

**_Not sure if I liked this chapter. I had a hard time deciding which way to make Grissom react but I think I stayed true to his character. Let me know what you think. Thanks! To Be Continued Soon!_**


	13. Chapter 13

Thanks for the great reviews. I appreciate everyone taking the time to read and review my stories.

Chapter 13

Sara sat in the front sit of Brass's car in a very foul mood. They had just hurriedly picked up some items at a Wal-mart to get she and Nick through the next couple of nights. She was still pissed that Grissom had sent her into hiding. She knew she needed time to recover from her wounds but she felt she could heal just as well at the lab and not in some fancy hotel room.

Sara knew Nick was greatly relieved. He would be able to watch her and protect her. Not that she minded being alone with him but she knew he would want to know how she was really feeling. She wasn't ready to open up about her fears now or if ever. She would never be able to give him what he needed and she had to find a way to tell him without hurting him.

Sara felt Jim looking over at her and her frown deepened. "Sara it's really not that bad. You'll be in a luxury suite with full amenities and you'll have the handsome Texan to fulfill your every wish." She looked over at him and gave him a snort.

"Hey?" came a dismayed voice from the backseat, "What's wrong with having your own personal handsome Texan?" Sara turned to look at him and gave him an apologetic smile. "It's not you Nick. It's this whole ridiculous situation. We're not going to catch this guy sitting in a hotel suite." "But," Brass interjected, "You'll be alive when we do catch him." Sara humphed and turned to look out the window. The rest of the ride to the hotel was in silence. They listened to the radio announcer say that a heat wave was about to sink its ugly claws into the city. Tomorrows highs were expected to reach over 112 degrees and the heat was suppose to last for least several days. Sara groaned. It just kept getting better and better.

It was after 3 in the morning when Brass finally left them, satisfied that they were safe. He had secured the room and gone over exactly what they were to do if something happened. As an extra precaution and at Grissom's demand there was a guard stationed outside their door.

Sara paced the magnificent room as if she were a caged animal. Nick, however, thoroughly enjoyed himself, checking everything out. He threw himself down on the king size bed and said with a waggle of his eyebrows, "Come feel how nice and cozy the bed is, Sara." Sara growled at him and stormed out into the other room.

Nick groaned as he pulled himself off of the feather soft bed. He marched into the sitting room and angrily said, " I understand you do not want to be here but don't take it out on me. I want to catch this maniac just as bad as you do but we're both not in any shape to do it. So why don't you chill for the next few hours and let your body relax."

She opened her mouth to let him have it but all that came out was a frustrated sigh. All her tension and pumped up adrenaline suddenly left her. She shoulders slumped and sat down on the couch. She looked up at him fighting the tears that were forming in her eyes. Nick's eyes soften as he came toward her. "Darlin' it's going to be all right. You need to relax and try to get a few good hours sleep."

She wiped at her eyes and nodded. "Come here," he said holding out his good hand. She let him pull her up and lead her to the balcony doors. He opened them and they stepped outside. The view was spectacular. It was a sea of beautiful lights as far as the eyes could see. Nick pulled her close and she snuggled into his warmth. They stood there for the longest time enjoying the view and the feel of their bodies pressed close together.

Sara finally turned and snaked her hands up into his hair bringing his lips down to softly taste hers. Minutes passed as they slowly explored each other's mouths. Soon Sara's hands began an intimate journey down his shoulders and across his back. She caressed and stroked the muscles beneath her fingertips. She reached the hem of his shirt and pulled it out of his pants. Her hands instinctively sought out his warm silky skin.

When Nick felt her hands touch his skin he deepen the kiss, growling out his need for her. His good hand found her ass and brought her up hard against his aching body. His hand then traveled to her back seeking out her soft skin. He snaked his hand up inside her shirt and caressed her heated skin. She moaned against his mouth and ground herself seductively against him.

Nick tore his mouth from hers, gasping for air. "Christ Sara," he growled as she reached out and ran her hands down his chest just stopping short of her destination. Nick's deep brown eyes flared with passion as he fought for control over his heated body. "Sara we need to slow down." He hissed as her hands continued to caress him. When she didn't stop he stepped out of her reach.

Sara's lust filled eyes flew to his. "Nick I want you now!" she moaned. "Sara we decided to wait till we were both better." "No that's what you decided," she said running her hand up inside his shirt. "Sara," Nick groaned as she circled his nipple with her finger. "I don't care Nick. I want you to take me. Take me hard and fast now!" her voice demanded.

Her words slowly penetrated his lust filled brain and he reached out and stopped her wandering hands. "What?" he said with an edge in his voice. She looked up at him in confusion. "I want you to f…"she started when he cut her off with a thunderous "NO!" He pushed her away in anger.

"What's your problem?" she fumed looking at his fury filled eyes.

"That's not what you and I are about," he said quietly.

"That's exactly what you and I are about," she hissed.

"Like hell! We're not some strangers who met in a bar. We're friends Sara." Nick said trying to remain calm.

"Yes friends who want to screw each other." Sara countered.

"Is that all you see this as: a comfort lay?" Nick said icily.

"Yes," she said quickly. He looked at her for a moment not quite believing what he was hearing. She turned and headed back inside to the bedroom.

He followed her and said, "This conversation is not over."

"Oh yes it is," she said picking up a pillow and tossing it at him. "You can sleep on the couch." He caught the pillow and threw it back on the bed. "Sara," he growled as he stalked toward her.

"I'm sorry if you have more feeling for me than I do for you. I'm just surprised you'd give up an unconditional screw."

Nick's face turned red and a wave of anger rolled through his body. "Don't you dare throw my feeling for you in my face. I know exactly what as been happening between the BOTH of us the past few days. I feel it and YOU feel it. So don't try and cheapen it with your vulgar words."

Fury filled Sara as she rounded on him, " Don't you dare assume how I feel. You're the one with blinders on his eyes. You want this to be some sweet true love romance. Well it's not and it never will be. Our feelings are based on our near death experiences. They're not real. We can fool ours for a little while but one day you'll wake up and realize that I'm not giving you what you need. I can't! You need someone whole, a woman who can give you everything you need."

He watched tears fill her eyes as she talked. She looked at him, as she sobbed, "It can't be me. It will never be me." She turned and raced into the bathroom, slamming and locking the door.

Nick stood there frozen, the real meaning of her words slowly sinking in. This was her way of pushing him away. Christ he had been so stupid. He sat down on the bed, listening to her quiet sobs. He ran his hand threw his hair and sighed. She didn't think she could give him what he needed in a relationship. She thought herself broken because of the rape. What she didn't know was that he understood all to well her fears and anxiety about being in a real relationship. She knew him well enough to know that he didn't just want sex with her. He wanted more. So she used that to start the fight. She needed to push him away in order to protect herself.

But he wasn't going to let her push him away. He loved her and he knew she had strong feelings for him too. He could see the pain in her eyes as she said those awful things to him. He knew what he needed to do. He had to tell her she was not alone, that she was not the only one broken. He wanted her to see that given time the two of them might make each other whole. He was willing to open his heart up to her because he knew deep down inside that she was the only one who would be gentle enough with it. She would understand who Nick Stokes really was just as he understood who Sara Sidle really was. The woman he loved.

TBC

Please let me know what you think.


	14. Chapter 14

Thanks for the wonderful reviews! Enjoy!

Chapter 14

Nick paced nervously outside the bathroom door. He wanted to give her enough time to compose herself but at the same time he didn't want to give her time to think of another reason to push him away.

Sealing his nerves he knocked gently on the door and called her name. She did not respond. "Sara please we need to talk." Nick said imploringly. He waited. After a minute or so the door opened slowly.

Sara's eyes were red and her lovely face was streaked with tears. "There's nothing to talk about. There is no us. It was a bad idea. So let's just forget about it," she said flatly.

He looked at her for a long moment and could see that she was lying. Without warning he zoomed in and captured her mouth with his. He quickly took control of the kiss and filled it with all the passion and desire he felt for her.

At first he thought she was going to fight him but soon he felt her responding. Her hands found there way into his hair and she pulled him up tight against her body. Their lips and tongues clashed against one another heatedly in a battle of wills.

Finally Sara gave up her fight and surrendered to him. He groaned hotly when he felt her succumb to him. His mouth left hers and journeyed seductively to her neck. She moaned at the ardent sensation his mouth was making her feel. When he reached her ear he whispered, "You're a terrible liar you know."

"I know," she answered hotly as she began to nibble her way up his neck. He knew it would be too easy to let them selves get carried away, so he gently grasped her arm and stepped away from her.

Her eyes flared briefly with anger at him for stopping yet again. "I have to tell you something and I need you to listen, Okay?" He watched her struggle for control. She nodded her head in agreement but the pout remained on her face.

Nick took her hand and led her to the bed. "Let's sit." he said gently. She sat and tried to scoot away from him but he refused to let her. He grabbed her hand and held it tightly in his. He looked in hers eyes and said softly, "I'm not mad at you for trying to push me away. I understand why you're doing it." She humphed slightly and shook her head. "Sara please give me a chance." She sighed when she saw the sincerity in his eyes. "I'm sorry," she answered.

"I know you think you can't give me what I need. That in some way you think you're broken." She started to protest but he squeezed her hand to silence her.

"But you're wrong Sara, so very wrong. I understand your pain and your fears and why you feel the need to push me away. You feel like a piece of yourself was violently taken away, and night after night you pray that the missing piece will come back to you. But you know deep down inside that it's not ever coming back. And that thought terrifies you. Because you have to finally come to terms with what was taken from you, your innocence and your ability to completely trust another human being. You feel broken and not complete. And you wonder how am I ever going to have a real relationship. How can it work when I not a whole human being? But most importantly how can that person begin to understand the pain and the guilt that I've lived with for so many years. Because regardless of what the experts say those feelings do not go away, they're always there and somehow they've become a part of us."

He paused for a moment watching her eyes fill with confusion at his words. He knew what she was thinking, 'How does he know?' He squeezed her hand gently and continued, "It doesn't make you a broken person Sara, it only makes you that much stronger. It's scary to reach out to another person and open yourself up. You're afraid to trust them with your heart. But I am ready to take the chance with you Sara. I've spent too many years running and being afraid. I'm ready to trust you with my heart. I just hope in time you can learn to trust me with yours. To me you're not broken. You're the strongest woman I've ever met and I care about you. I want you, ALL of you."

He finished and looked deeply into her eyes. He watched emotion after emotion pass through her eyes: confusion, disbelief, realization and finally acceptance.

"When?" she whispered. "When I was nine, a last minute babysitter." He said without emotion. Her eyes widen in shock and she brought her hand up to cover her mouth. "You were so young," she breathed. He nodded his head. "What happened?" she asked. "Nothing, like you I was to afraid. I was terrified to tell my parents. I was scared they wouldn't love me anymore."

"Oh Nick," she whispered, holding his hand tighter. "Years later I found out she was killed in a drunk driving accident. It helped a little to know she was finally gone. But it was far from any kind of closure."

Sara nodded in agreement. She gazed at him for a moment realizing that she had pegged him all wrong. Through the years she had gotten to know him quite well and she could see what a kind and caring man he was but she also assigned him negative qualities too, like being a womanizer and a frat boy party jock.

Sara's eyes filled with tears when she thought back to the harsh words she had said to him and the awful reputation she had assumed he had. But he had been just like her: terrified and not knowing how to handle it.

"Sara," Nick said gently bringing his hand up to wipe at her tears. "The way I treated you sometimes and the things I assumed. I'm so sorry Nick." "It's alright Darlin' there was no way for you to know." "But I can see it now. All those cases that involved abused kids. I can remember the pain on your face. God Nick!"

"Those cases are always hard on me but I see a counselor on and off when it gets to be too much. It has definitely helped me." Nick answered. Sara brought her hand up and covered his on her cheek. She stroked it affectionately and softly said, "I'm sorry that it happened to you."

Nick's eyes softened at her words and he said, "And I'm sorry that it happened to you." She gave him a sad smile and leaned in to kiss him gently on the lips. As the kiss ended they rested the foreheads against one another, closing their weary eyes. "What are we going to do?" she asked softly.

"First we're going to sleep. I don't know about you but I'm exhausted. Then tomorrow we're going to catch this bastard. After that I'm going to take you on a real date, after which I intend to make love to you for as long as I physically can." He could feel her face light up into a smile.

"I don't know if I can wait that long Nick," she said teasingly. He leaned back and looked into her eyes and said, "But I'm going to be soooo worth the wait." He gave her a playful smirk and jumped off the bed before she could retaliate. "Oh you think so Stokes?" "Oh I know so Sidle."

Sara gave him a smirk before grabbing her stuff to head into the bathroom. She turned and said with a grin, "That couch is still sounding like a good place for you to sleep." With that said she shut the bathroom door.

Nick chuckled to himself before divesting himself of his clothes. He climbed into bed in just his boxers. He sighed contently and snuggled under the blankets. His eye popped open when he heard the bathroom door open. Upon seeing her sleeping attire or lack there of, both eyes flew open. "What the hell are you wearing?' he groaned bolting up in bed.

Sara smiled sweetly and looked down at the semi see through red teddy she had on. She ran her hands seductively down her body and Nick groaned again when he noticed the little red lacy panties she had on underneath. "What? This?" she asked innocently. "You bought that at Wal-Mart?" he asked in disbelieve. "Yeah, not to bad huh? Almost as good as Victoria's Secret." Nick groaned again.

Sara headed for the bed and Nick practically whined, "You're not wearing that to bed are you?" "If you don't like it I can just take it off," she said slyly as she began to slide the straps from her shoulders. Nick's eyes flared with lust as he tried to form a coherent word. "God Sara," was all he could moan.

She took pity on him and laughed softly as she climbed up and straddled his waist. "Not helping," Nick gasped. She gave him a pleased smile and said, "I'm sorry. I got this in hopes that something would happen tonight." He raised his eyebrows in surprise and tried desperately to keep his eyes on her face. He thanked God there was a sheet and blanket between their bodies because if he could actually feel her skin he would be a goner.

Sara brought her hands down on either side of his face and leaned slowly down. Nick lost the battle and his eyes zoomed in on her breasts that were snuggly held in the sheer material. There was nothing left to his imagination. He moaned at the beautiful sight of her. He looked back up at her with defeat in his eyes.

Getting the desired affect she wanted, she climbed off of him. Nick's eyes widened in shock and he rolled over to look at her. "What are you doing?" he asked disgruntled. "Going to sleep," she replied. "What!?" Nick yelled. "You said you were exhausted," she stated in a matter of fact voice. "What? No! I mean I was but now I'm awake, wide awake." Nick muttered.

"I've been thinking, Nick, about what you said, and I would have to agree." Sara said with a sly grin. "About what?" Nick asked guardedly. "That you'd be worth the wait," she answered with a smirk. Nick's eyes widened and he flopped back on the bed grumbling, "You are such a tease woman. Just remember payback's a bitch." She laughed gleefully, rolled over and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I'm really sorry Nick but I couldn't resist. I just needed to know that you want me as much as I want you. I'm sorry."

"God Sara you have no idea how bad I want you and after seeing you in this outfit, that want just quadrupled." Nick sighed, covering his face with his hand. "Nick," she whispered pulling his hand away. He turned his head and looked over at her. All her playfulness had left her. Her eyes were somber and her face serious.

"What's the matter Darlin'?" Nick asked softly. She reached over and lovingly stroked his cheek. "Thank you for opening up and being honest with me. I know it had to be difficult. But it means more to me then you'll ever know." He smiled at her heartfelt words. "You were the brave one Sara. I just followed your lead. I've wanted to tell you for a long time but I didn't know how. After you shared your secret I knew you would understand." She nodded her head and snuggled up close to him laying her head in the crook of his good arm. Their faces were inches apart, their hot breath caressing each other's faces. He watched as tears slowly filled her eyes. "Sara, honey, what's wrong?"

"That's it Nick. For the first time in forever nothing's wrong. Well unless you count a maniac stalking me," she said with a little laugh. Nick rolled his eyes and waited for her to continue. "Nick, the weights gone. The heavy burden of my secret doesn't seem so all-consuming now. I feel like I can breathe again. That maybe I can be truly happy. And it's because of you." She said quietly as a tear slid gently down her face.

Nick could feel his own eyes filling at her words. He knew her well enough to know that it took a lot for her to confess something like that to him. This was a huge step for her. "Sara honey I feel the same way. You've given me so much. You've filled that empty place in me." "Nick," she breathed. "Sara I…"

She quickly brought her finger up to his lips silencing his words. "Please Nick. I…" she faltered as her eyes begged him to understand. He gave her a gentle smile, leaned over and kissed her soundly on the lips. "I know you're not ready Sara but I just want you to know I'm here for the long run and I'm not going to let you push me away if the going gets tough. Okay?" Nick said with resolve.

Sara nodded her head slowly and gave him a small smile. "Good," he said, "Now let's get some sleep. I'm looking forward to a fabulous room serviced meal in the morning, paid for by the city of Vegas." Sara laughed and nestled in closer to Nick. "Thank you, Nick." "Goodnight Sara." He said kissing her forehead.

They both drifted off to sleep quickly, securely locked together in each other's arms. Their dreams were only of each other and their growing love.

In the early predawn hour while Nick and Sara slept peacefully, a madman stood cross the street watching and waiting. Clutched in his hand was a CSI id badge with a picture and a name. Sara Sidle. He stared at the picture for a moment before looking back up at the hotel. "Soon Sara, very soon." A deep, maniacal voice whispered.

As the temperature began to slowly rise outside the need to have Sara began to smolder deep inside the madman. He didn't know how much longer he could wait to touch her again. His need was growing stronger and stronger. Maybe it was time to find another girl, someone to ease his ache. The sun broke its way over the horizon and the man smiled. It was going to be a killer of a day.

TBC


	15. Chapter 15

Very sorry that I have not updated in sooooo long. Please review if you want me to continue with this story. I'm going to be very busy over the next couple of weeks. But if the demand is strong I will try and set aside time to continue. Thanks!!!

Chapter 15

Sara snuggled in closer to the warmth that surround red her and she sighed with contentment. Nick watched in amusement as a smile graced her peaceful face. He treasured these few moments of being able to watch her sleep. Her beautiful face was vacant of any stress or worries.

Her long, dark eyelashes stood in striking contrast to her pale skin. Her sensuous, red lips were curved into a smile and a wave of her dark, silky hair curled softly on her cheek. Sara was naturally beautiful and that beauty seemed to radiate even more as she slept.

As Sara began to stir, Nick sighed in disappointment, wishing he had more time to memorize her lovely face. He gingerly moved his bad shoulder to reach over and gently caress her soft skin. He ran his fingertips slowly across her luscious lips. She moaned softly at the sensation and slowly opened her big brown eyes.

"Hi," he heard her whisper. "Hey Darlin'" he smiled. He watched her slowly stretch her graceful body and then snuggle back in against him. He couldn't help but smile at the gesture. "What time is it?" she asked. Nick glanced down at his watch and chuckled, "It's after 4:00." "What?" she exclaimed, "I can't believe we slept that long." " Just having you in my arms made me sleep better." Nick replied with a grin. "Mmmmm," she murmured softly as she ran her fingertips back and forth across his chest.

Nick closed his eyes and enjoyed the sensation of her fingers gliding across his skin. His hand found it's way into her hair and he slowly stroked her satiny tresses. They were laying there quietly enjoying each other's gentle caresses when Nick's stomach let out a loud gurgle noise.

Sara immediately burst into a fit of giggles at the sound. "You find my hungry tummy amusing Sara?" he said with a playful gleam in his eyes. "Quite," she said still laughing. Suddenly Sara felt Nick's fingers on her waist and she let out a squeal. "Don't you tickle me Nick Stokes!" She scrambled out of his reach and sat on the edge of the bed on her knees.

A huge smile crossed Nick's face as he watched Sara. "What are you smiling at?" she asked, her voice laced with suspicion. His smile seemed to grow even wider as he said, "You. I must say that you look incredibly hot in that color. And the material does wonders for that sexy body of yours."

Sara glanced down and groaned. She forgot she was still in the very revealing teddy. She glanced back at Nick whose eyes were gazing hungrily at her very exposed breasts. She had to stifle a moan when her body readily responded to his lustful gaze. She watched with heated eyes as he threw the blankets off of his magnificent body and sat up. He stood up slowly and seductively stretched his body. Her eyes traveled slowly over his broad, muscled shoulders, down his incredibly, chiseled chest and over his sexy 6 pack abs. Her eyes finally came to rest on his boxers. She couldn't help but blush when she saw his obvious arousal. Her eyes shot to his and she had to stifle a moan when she saw the look of wanton lust clearly etched on his gorgeous face.

As Nick moved toward her slowly, he huskily whispered, "The things I want to do to that sexy body of yours Sara, with my hands and with my mouth." "God Nick," she hissed as she closed her eyes trying desperately to control her sudden raging desire.

She felt him stop in front of her and she opened her eyes to look up at him. His handsome face was full of concentration and his dark eyes danced with passion. He reached out and caressed her cheek. He then sensuously outlined her lovely lips and slowly trailed his finger down the column of her throat. She groaned slowly at the arousing sensation. His finger finally came to rest in the valley between her breasts.

Nick watched intently as her chocolate eyes became heavy with desire. He continued his leisurely journey and glided his finger over the curving swell of her breast. He felt her heated in take of breath as his finger traveled exquisitely slow over to her other breast.

Nick had to fight his aching need to cup her enticing breasts in his hands and run his thumbs across her hardened nubs. Instead he pulled his hand away and nonchalantly said, "I'm starved so I'm going to order room serve. Do you want anything?"

Sara looked up at him in confusion. "Huh?" she stammered. "Food, I'm hungry." Nick said with a smirk as he headed toward the bathroom. "Nick!" Sara said with exasperation. "What?" he asked innocently. "You're going to leave me like this?" Sara asked dubiously. "Try a cold shower. It usually works for me." Nick said with a triumphant grin as he shut the bathroom door.

"Bastard!" Sara yelled as she threw herself back on the bed. The bathroom door opened an inch and she heard Nick's laughing voice say, "Isn't payback a bitch." "Ahhhh!" she growled as she threw a pillow at the now closed bathroom door. She got up and stormed to the door. She tried the handle but it was locked. "I know you're in there taking a cold shower Stokes! Remember I saw the physical evidence!" She could hear his laughter as he turned on the shower. She threw herself back on the bed and sighed. A smile began to makes its way across her lips. He got her and she loved it.

Nick was still smiling with satisfaction as he ate his steak and baked potato dinner. Sara sat across from him, sending him murderous glares every now and then as she ate her garden salad. "Sar, your not going to stay mad at me all night are you?" Nick asked with a playful grin. "Maybe," she replied with a smirk of her own. Nick was about to plead his case when their cell phone rang. Sara pounced on it before Nick could move.

"Hello…Hey…Yes I survived the night with Nick. But he may not be so lucky tonight." She gave Nick a teasing smirk. "Yeah sure. Great…Where? …Oh okay…. see you in an hour." Sara gave Nick a huge grin and said, "That was Brass. He said we could go to the lab and work for a while. He's working on our new living arrangements. He'll be here in an hour."

"Do you think going into the lab is such a good idea Sara?" Nick cautiously asked. "I need to be doing something or I'll go crazy Nick." "I know exactly what you should be doing and you'll only be driving me crazy Sara," He said seductively with a waggle of his eyebrows. "Nick," she smiled. He stood up suddenly and made his way around the table to her. He held his hand out and she took it, letting him pull her to her feet.

He wrapped his good arm around her and pulled her close to him. He looked deeply into her eyes and asked, "Are we okay?" Sara gave him a beautiful smile and said, " We're fine Nick, in fact I'd say we're great." "Yeah?" he asked with a flirty grin. "Cause you know my shoulder is feeling a hell of a lot better. I think in a couple of days I'll be able to put some weight on it." He waggled his eyebrows again.

"Oh really? You know Nick I'm more then capable of sitting in the driver's seat." She said with a waggle of her eyebrows. "Oh I can just imagine you having complete control of the driving and I'm all for that. But the first time out I'd like to be able to do a little of the driving to see how well you handle." Nick replied with a sexy grin. "Oh I can assure you, you'll enjoy the ride. In fact I can guarantee you will want at least a dozen test runs." Sara said with a sexy grin of her own.

"Is that a fact? Just so you know Sara, I've been looking forward to this ride for quite some time now and I'm going to make it last as long as possible. I'm going to take every curve and bend, and every hill and valley as slow as I can. I don't want to miss a thing."

Sara face flushed at his meaningful words. She wrapped her arms around him and slid up against his body. She whispered huskily in his ear, "As long as I get the same driving privileges." She heard him laugh as he pulled her into a hug. She moved her hands up into his hair and gently guided his mouth to hers. They lost themselves in each other for a while until the knocking on the door brought them back to reality. It was time to face the real world and to try to catch the monster that was controlling their lives.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Nick sighed in frustration as he examined the hair sample from the last crime scene under the microscope. He wiped at his brow for the umpteenth time. Even though the lab was air-conditioned it was still uncomfortably hot. As promised the temperature had reached record heat today and the air had not cooled off at all when the sun had set. He stood up and stretched his back, letting the memories of earlier that day fill his head. He couldn't help but smile as he remembered watching Sara sleep. He had been nervous about how they would be with one another now that they had no secrets between them. His worries were all erased the moment she opened her eyes and gave him a beautiful smile.

He laughed to himself when he remembered their shameless flirting and the look on her face when he had left her fully aroused in the bedroom. He indeed had to take a very cold shower. The overwhelming amount of sexual chemistry they had together amazed and thrilled him. She was totally different from all the other girls he had dated. He had finally found what he had been searching for. She was it for him. He just prayed she felt the same way about him.

He went back to analyzing the hair sample retrieved from the last victim's body when he felt a pair of arms snake around his waist and felt a hot kiss on his neck. Nick couldn't help but smile as he stood up and turned around. Sara stood there with a shy smile on her face. He wrapped his good arm around her and drew her close. "Hey," he whispered in her ear. "Hey," she whispered back. He kissed her softly on the cheek and leaned back to look at her. He raised his eyebrows in question of her sudden appearance. She gave him a smile and simply said, "I missed you."

His beautiful brown eyes lit up at her words and a sexy Stokes grin spread across his face. "You did huh?" he said slowly. "Yeah," she said softly as her eyes zeroed in on his lips. "Well that's good Darlin' cause I missed you too," he said huskily as he leaned toward her to capture her mouth with his. His lips slid tenderly across hers as his hand traveled unhurriedly toward her sexy rear end.

Sara's hands found their way up into his hair as she gently pulled him in closer to her. She groaned seductively as she felt his tongue teasing her own. Nick was slowly losing all his will power as he felt Sara's body begin to rub itself against his. The sound of someone clearing his throat sent them crashing back to reality in a hurry.

Warrick stood in the doorway with a knowing smirk on his face. He watched in amusement as both Sara's and Nick's faces flushed red. "I'm glad you two have finally seen the light but keep it outside the lab. If Grissom had caught you, he have both your asses in a sling. And you definitely don't want Greg walking in on you. You'd break the poor guy's heart Sara."

Sara's face flushed even more as she took a step away from Nick. "God you are so right Warrick. I don't know what I was thinking." She turned and looked at Nick and said, "Stop being so damn irresistible Stokes." She gave him a wink and headed out the door.

Nick couldn't help but laugh as he watched her saunter out the door. He turned to face Warrick who was watching him with curious eyes. "What's up man?" he asked. "Sara seems better." Warrick stated.

"Yeah she is. We aired a lot of dirty laundry last night. I think we understand each other a little bit better now."

"You've got it bad, Nick. I can see it in your eyes." Warrick said seriously.

"I'm in love with her." Nick said quietly. "Well yeah I already knew that." Warrick said with a grin.

"What? How? I just realized it. How the hell did you know?" Nick cried. "Man you've always wore your heart out on your sleeve when it's come to her. Just the way you look at her was a dead give away."

Nick groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. "So everybody knows how I feel?" "Nah, Cath and I, maybe Greg. Forget Grissom. You'd have to hit him in the head with jar full of bug larva." Nick chuckled and said, "He knows."

"What?" Warrick exclaimed. "Let me put it this way. We were way off base about Grissom and his feelings for Sara. He has them and there a lot stronger then I like." "Jesus. Why didn't he ever act on them? She mooned over him for years."

Nick started to pace nervously. "I don't know man but he basically gave me the go head last night. He told me I'd be able to give more then he ever could. Myself." "He said that? Grissom actually said that? Man! How does Sara feel about all of this? How does she feel about you Nick? Cause I don't want to see either one of you get hurt." Warrick said sincerely.

Nick sighed and turned to look at his friend. "She scared. I know that. She's said she's moved passed her feeling for Grissom. She admitted she was attracted to me from the moment we met but because we're so different she chose to ignore her feelings. Grissom was similar to her so he provided a comfort level for her. She said she's finally ready to move on with her life with me in it."

Warrick being as perceptive as he was said quietly, "But this situation that your in makes you doubt her true feelings. Your scared she may not feel the same way when this is all over?"

Nick groaned in frustration and started pacing again, "Warrick man, I can feel it when she kisses me right down to my soul. She's it for me. But I don't know if she feels it too. It's there for a moment when she touches me. I can see it in her eyes but then the wall comes up. Last night was a huge step for us. She let me in and it felt great. I just need to get her to keep that damn wall down long enough to get completely in."

"There's no way she can resist the Stokes charm but I really don't think you should worry to much. Because the old Sara I know would have never of kissed you like that in the middle of the lab. I think this situation is forcing her to reevaluate her life and you being by her side as only strengthened her resolve. I think you're the best thing that could have happened to her and she knows it. And that kiss she just gave you confirms it. Don't push her too much Nick just be there if she needs a hand to hold on too."

Nick smiled at Warrick's kind words, "Thanks man. I needed to hear that." "No problem. You and Sara deserve some happiness. We all do." Just them Warrick's cell rang. "Brown," he answered. "Warrick, it's Grissom. We've got a situation and I need you out at the Lucky Sevens motel ASAP." "I'll be there in 20," Warrick said shutting his phone. "Problem?" Nick asked. "Yeah, Grissom sounded very agitated and that's not like him. He and Cath are at a little motel off the strip investigating a murdered girl." "Great." Nick sighed, "You think it has something to do with our guy?" "Don't know but I'll give you a heads up as soon as I can." With that said Warrick was out the door.

Nick shook his head in frustration. They had very few leads to work on. Greg was still working on the listening devices. He learned that they were government issued. He was now trying to find out exactly where they had come from. Sara was working on local shops that carried the name brand ski mask they had matched from the piece of fiber. They were at a dead end with no DNA from the semen recovered. The maniac wore latex gloves so there were no fingerprints to analyze. The hair sample was their biggest lead and Nick was unable to come up with any matches to it. As he stood there thinking, he had a flashback to the night Sara was attacked. He hit him suddenly that the jacket the guy had been wearing was somehow familiar. He needed to find Sara to see if she could remember any more information about the coat. He realized that he and Sara were perfect witnesses and they needed to sit down to try and piece the puzzle together. They had both seen the guy. They needed to pull important details from their memories. He hurried down the hall hoping Sara would agree to his idea. He hated the idea of asking her to relive that night again but he strongly felt they had missed something important. He hoped that putting their memories together they might come up with an important lead.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Warrick stood in the doorway of the motel room and looked over at his colleagues as they processed the body. He stepped quietly into the room and met Brass's worried eyes. Brass shook his head sadly and said, "See for yourself." He walked slowly toward the body and stopped when Catherine stood up. Her eyes were filled with tears as she stepped away. Warrick's anxious eyes shot to Grissom who was still examining the body. His eyes reluctantly moved to the body. He could hear his own sudden intake of breath at what he saw before him. A young woman was posed serenely on top of the blankets on the motel's queen sized bed. She looked almost peaceful and surreal in the position she was in. Her legs were together and straight out and her hands were neatly folded across her stomach. Her dark hair was fanned out around her head. She looked like she was ready to be buried.

At first glance he thought it was Sara lying there. The similarities were startling, from her long legs to her dark hair to her pale skin and pouty lips. She looked just how he pictured Sara sleeping. Only this girl was not sleeping and thank god she was not Sara. "Jesus," he whispered meeting Grissom's eyes. "How was she killed?" "Stabbed in the heart," Grissom answered quietly. He pointed to the bathroom.

Warrick headed inside and froze when he saw the bloody evidence in the tub. "He let her bleed out," Catherine said softly from behind him. He turned and met her distressed eyes. He felt his stomach clench tightly into a knot. "It gets worse," she said, her voice breaking with emotion. He raised his eyebrows in question. How could it get worse? She motioned with her head to go back out to the body.

As Warrick walked back into the room, Grissom motioned him over. He gently lifted the girl's hands and opened them so Warrick could see her palms. Carved into one was the name **_Sara_** and on the other was the word **_dead_**

Warrick's anxious eyes shot to his boss's. "Damn," he mumbled. Grissom laid the girls hands back down by her sides and lifted the girl's shirt. Carved into the girl's stomach was the name **_Sara. _**"When we take her back to the lab, I think we're going to find her body covered in these carvings." Grissom said grimly.

Warrick shook his head, sickened by the thought. "Did he do these after she was dead?" he asked. "No, David thinks she was alive when he did it based on the coagulating of the blood in the wounds. We'll know more when Doc Robbins does the autopsy. I also asked for a tox screen." Grissom said.

"Hell," Warrick mumbled as he turned away rubbing his hands across his face. "He's got us by our balls he knows it." Warrick growled to know one in particular.

"No he's broken his pattern. He's escalating now. He's going to get sloppy. He's not taking the time to plan the murders out. He will leave a piece of himself. We've just got to find it." Grissom said. "But Gil his need to have Sara is also increasing. He's becoming unpredictable and that makes him very dangerous." Catherine said.

Just then Grissom's cell phone rang. "Grissom" he answered curtly. "Yes Greg, I am busy… What do you have? …What?…When?'… Good job. Keep digging." He clicked his phone off and looked over at his 2 co-workers.

"Greg found out where those listening devices were from. They were stolen from the San Francisco Police Department's storage warehouse 3 years ago." "What?" Catherine exclaimed. Warrick shook his head in disbelief.

"What are you thinking?' Grissom asked him. "This murder was way to personal. I'm beginning to think that Sara's been the target all along. This San Fran connection is just too much of a coincidence. I think we need to check into some of Sara's old case files."

"I agree. Something as been off since this whole mess started. I want you to go back to the lab and run a check on murders with similar characteristics in the San Fran area over the last 5 years. Maybe our suspect knew Sara from her days with the San Fran crime lab and just happened to find out she worked here and he decided a little payback was in order."

Warrick nodded and asked, "What should I tell Nick and Sara?' "Nothing yet. Let's see if this hunch plays out and if Cath and I find any sufficient evidence here. We'll decide when we meet you back at the lab."

Warrick took one last look at the dead girl before he headed out the door. Brass followed him out. "So where's the happy couple hiding tonight?" Warrick asked with a small smile. "I got them a room something special but it's not as nice as last nights."

"As long as there's food, a TV, a bed and Sara, Nick will be very happy." Warrick chuckled.

"Yeah, Nick's got it bad but so does she. She's just not ready to admit it yet. They've been on the verge for years now. I'm just glad they're headed in the right direction. The only thing standing in their way is this psycho." Brass said. "Whose ass we're going to nail to the wall." Warrick finished.

"Damn right! Tell them I'll be there in a couple of hours to pick them up. I've got a couple of witnesses to talk too. See you." Brass said walking away.

Warrick climbed into his SUV and sighed. They had to find this bastard as soon as possible because time was running out for Sara. Nick was going to freak when he found out about this victim and what was done to her. He wasn't sure how Sara would react but he knew it wouldn't be good. He headed back to the lab knowing it was going to be a hellishly long night.

* * *

He stood by a crowd of onlookers and watched as the tall, black man got back in his SUV. He knew she wouldn't come. She was too scared, her and her wussy new boyfriend. The boyfriend had come as a surprise. She had been alone for so long, pining away for her oblivious boss. He hadn't expected him, this Nick. But he should have known better. It was just like her to be screwing one of her co-workers just like she had back in San Francisco. Nick was a minor inconvenience. One that could be easily disposed of with a simple pull of the trigger. He would not let the boyfriend get in the way of his plans for Sara. He had waited to long.

He moved easily among the crowd of people. No one giving him a second look. He marveled at how effortlessly the big bad wolf could walk among the sheep. Fools! They were all fools, especially the high and mighty CSI's. He would bring them to their knees. He smiled at the thought. He could see them all crying over Sara's dead body. They couldn't stop him. He was too smart for them.

As he made his way to the car, his cell phone rang. "Yeah," he answered. He listened intently to the person on the phone. "Okay, I'll be there as soon as I can." He hung up and growled. He had to fly back to San Francisco. His mother had inoperable cancer and she had taken a turn for the worst. She wanted her son home with her when she died. He would go. That's what a good son would do. He smiled to himself. This little time away might work to his advantage. If a few days went by without incident the fools might begin to let their guards down. Yes, this could definitely work. When they least expected it, he would be there ready to take what was his: Sara.

TBC

Please let me know what you think. I have a Nick and Sara chapter planned and then the real action begins. So please stay tuned.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Nick and Sara sat at a table in the break room in deep thought. It had taken a little bit of effort on Nick's part to persuade Sara to talk about that night. But once she began to open up she seemed to immerse herself in her memories. Little details came back. As she talked, he would write things down that seemed important.

Nick had to keep his emotions in check when he listened to what the bastard had physically done to her. It angered him deeply that she had been touched in such a violent way.

Every now and then, Nick would ask Sara a question that forced her to reach into her memory. So far they had learned some very important facts. The suspect was a smoker. Sara could distinctly remember his foul breath when he had leaned in close to her. He had worn a watch of some sort on his left wrist. She could remember hitting it with her hand. He had also worn musky cologne, one Sara did not like.

Nick and Sara both agreed that the jacket the perp wore had been a windbreaker pull over, dark in color. There had been some sort of lettering on the left shoulder area.

Sara was most disturbed to remember that the SOB had called her Sara before he had ripped off her CSI badge. She was very upset that she had pushed this vital information out of her mind. This changed everything. The suspect already knew her.

Nick could only sit helplessly and watch as she paced the room. She was becoming more and more anxious by the minute. She felt powerless and hated it.

Warrick headed down the hall in desperate need of coffee. He had just run his search and found some promising leads. He entered the break room and saw his two friends looking anxious. "Hey," he said. Nick gave him a tired smile. He turned to Sara and asked, "What's up?"

She started to speak but her eyes filled up with tears and she choked on her words. Warrick's eyes flew to Nick's. He stood up and went to Sara. He put his arm around her and pulled her close. "We were talking about that night, trying to piece together some more details when Sara remembered that the suspect called her by her first name before he took her badge. The bastard already knew her man. It changes everything Warrick. It's personal." Nick said heatedly.

Warrick stood there for a moment. His instincts had been right. They had been looking in the wrong direction. Nick watched his face and knew something was wrong. "What do you know?" he asked Warrick.

Sara turned to face him, her eyes filled with anguish. Warrick rubbed his face wearily. "Grissom and I both were beginning to think it was personal." he said. "Why?" Sara demanded. Warrick sighed. "Grissom said he wants to wait until we're all together to talk about it."

Sara's eyes locked onto his. She saw it in his face, something else had happened. She pushed herself out of Nick's arms and came at him. Warrick had never seen her look so furious. He prepared himself for her full rage. "Tell me! Tell me now!! What's happened?" she yelled.

"Sara," he interjected. "No Warrick you tell me now!" She watched the muscles in his face tighten. She knew he was not going to tell her. "Damn it Warrick! Why won't you tell me?" She began to hit him in the chest with her hands out of frustration. "Tell me! Tell me!" she cried. He gently grasped her hands and held them against his chest, her big brown eyes pleading with him.

"I'm sorry Sara," he whispered. She broke into tears then and Warrick pulled her into his arms. He met Nick's worried eyes. Both men felt powerless. There was nothing they could do to console her.

Warrick gently rubbed her back as he held her. After awhile her crying quieted. She pulled away from him and hiccupped, "I'm sorry." "It's okay Sara. You have every right to be upset."

Nick came over and handed her some tissues and placed a comforting hand on her back. She gave him a grateful smile. He gently led her over to the couch and sat her down.

Just then Grissom and Catherine walked in. They both noticed Sara's tear streaked face. "I'm okay," she said shakily. Warrick spoke up and said, "She just remembered that the perp called her by her name before he took her ID badge."

"You were right, Warrick, in thinking that this is personal." Grissom said solemnly. "What made you guys start to think that?" Nick asked. Grissom gave him a small smile and said, "Greg found out some interesting information. The listening devices were stolen from the SFPD's warehouse 2 years ago." Sara's eyes grew wide with surprise. "We're thinking someone from one of your old cases has a grudge against you. Warrick did you run that check on similar cases in the San Fran area?" Grissom asked.

"Yes. Seven cases popped up with the same MO: strangulation, stabbing and rape. Two cases were from 1999. Both were hookers killed in an alleyway. Sara worked both cases. Two more murders in 2000 with hookers in motel rooms. Sara started on one but left to come here soon after. The last three cases, one in 2001, one in 2002, one in 2003, all involved professional women murdered in their homes." Warrick said somberly.

"Ah he was perfecting his crime," Grissom said. "So the question is why did he leave San Fran and come here?" Catherine said. "We're missing something. Sara wasn't even there for the last 4 murders. Are we positive he's targeted her? Maybe he just recognized her at the crime scene and decided to have some fun at her expense." Nick said optimistically.

Warrick and Grissom exchanged a look. "What aren't you telling us?" Sara asked suspiciously. Grissom sighed and said, "Catherine I want you on the phone with SFPD. Talk to the detectives and CSIs from those cases. See if they'll fax you what they have. Warrick I want you to check cities outside the San Fran area and the Vegas area to see if you get any hits on similar cases. Nick and Sara come with me."

Warrick and Cath gave them each a sympathetic look before they left the room. "Let's go see Doc Robbins." Nick felt his stomach tie itself up into a hundred little knots. This was not going to be good. He could just feel it. The three of them walked down the hall in silence. Sara tried mentally preparing herself for the worst.

Grissom stopped and faced them outside the autopsy room. "I want you to prepare yourselves. You'll understand why Warrick and I think that it is directed at Sara. What was done to the girl is very disturbing." Nick and Sara nodded gravely both trying to calm their rolling stomachs.

Doc Robbins looked up as they entered the room. He looked at Grissom with questioning eyes. "It's all right Al. They need to see her to understand." The coroner nodded and pulled back the sheet covering the girl.

Nick's eyes widened with horror as he sucked in his breath. The girl looked strikingly similar to Sara. A huge wave of nausea rolled threw him when he saw the carved words covering her body. The words ran up and down her legs, her arms and her upper torso. The same words over and over again, SARA & DEAD.

His eyes shot to Sara and he reached out to touch her more for his own comfort then anything else. Her eyes were frozen wide, her skin deathly pale and she was visibly shaking. "Sara are you all right?" Grissom asked her softly. She didn't speak, her eyes never leaving the body as she slowly nodded her head.

Doc Robbins rolled the girl over and Nick cried, "Sweet Jesus." Her backside was worse then her front. "Cause of death was a single stab wound to the heart. I'd say the blade was at least 6 inches long. I'll know more when I remove her heart. I believe she was drugged and the carvings were made while she was still alive. He wanted her blood to clot in the wounds. I do not believe she was cognizant when any of this happened. The pain alone would have made her loose consciousness. I'm still waiting on the tox screen but I believe it would have had to have been a powerful drug to keep her from feeling these brutal inflictions." Doc Robbins said.

Grissom watched as Nick's eyes locked on to the dead girls face. He knew he was imagining Sara lying there in her place. He had been there before and done the same thing. "Nick," he said sincerely, "It's not Sara."

Nick's eyes shot to his then Sara's. She turned to look at him slowly realizing what he was thinking. "I know but…." His voice cracked. Sara's heart broke at the pained look on his face. "I'm okay Nick," she tenderly said pulling him into her arms.

Nick latched onto her tightly and fought his urge to weep. The threat on Sara's life had suddenly become shockingly real. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to handle it if something happened to her.

Grissom cleared his throat and they stepped out of their embrace. Nick immediately reached for her hand and she gave his a reassuring squeeze. Just touching gave them both a sense of security. "Let's go to my office," Grissom said. They nodded to Doc and headed out the door.

They all took a seat in Grissom office and their boss steepled his hands on his desk. "I'm not sure what to do in this situation. It has escalated out of control. He's killed 4 women and I don't think he's going to stop. Tonight's murder was full of hateful passion. It scares me to think that it's all directed at Sara." Grissom stopped and met her eyes. She gave him a small smile for his heartfelt words. She knew he rarely expressed his feelings out loud.

"I need you think Sara, long and hard. The answer is in you somewhere, it maybe a very insignificant thing to you but means the world to him. It may not be a case you've worked on. It could be someone you dated, met in a bar, anyone. I want you to write everything down you can remember. Okay?" Grissom said. She nodded her head slowly, her mind all ready going into rewind.

A knock sounded on the door and Brass stuck his head in. "I'm here to take Cinderella and Prince Charming to the ball. Their carriage awaits." He said with a huge grin. Nick chuckled and squeezed Sara's hand. She smiled at him and stood up. "Guys I need to talk to Nick alone for a minute. Can you excuse us?" Grissom nodded and followed Brass out the door.

Nick raised a curious eyebrow at her and asked, "What's the matter Sar?" She sighed and reached down to gently stroke his cheek. "I need to be alone tonight so I can think Nick." "I know I'll just sleep on the couch. It's okay." Nick said.

"Nick, I need to be alone. I'll never be able to concentrate knowing you in the other room. I don't need any distractions and you are a major, sexy one. Do you understand?" she asked softly. "Sara," he protested. "I need to do this please." Nick looked away, hurt that she did not want him with her. But he understood she felt she had to do this alone. "Okay," he said wearily, "I just don't like not being by your side. I can't protect you when you're not with me."

She leaned down and tenderly kissed his lips, touched by his concern. Nick stood up and wrapped her in his arms. "I'll see if Brass will let me go home," he said somberly. "Thank you for understanding." she whispered in his ear. "I'd do anything for you Sara." He replied softly as he kissed her on the cheek.

Sara was up for almost 2 hours in the hotel suite making her list. She finally fell into an exhausted sleep after 3:00 in the morning.

_Sara could feel his thick fingers wrapping themselves around her neck. She struggled violently against his choking hold. She was going to die, die all along. She sobbed out Nick's name, frantically reaching for him but he was not there. "Please Nick I need you. Help me!" she sobbed. She thrashed her legs against the sheets. Her hands desperately clawing at the vice grip on her throat. "He's not coming! I made sure he'll never come," she heard the monster laugh._

"Nick!" she cried, sitting up in the bed trembling. She looked over at where he should have been. She was a fool. She sent him away thinking she could handle the memories alone. She had been wrong. She ran her shaky fingers through her sweat soaked hair and shivered.

Sara realized how much he had helped her the passed few days. He had been her sole support, the one person she completely trusted and she had pushed him away. She looked at the clock. It read 4:06. She picked up the cell phone debating whether or not to call him. Her heart won the fight.

She dialed his number. It hadn't even finished ringing once when he answered. "Darlin' are you all right?" She couldn't help but smile at his sweet endearment. He had been calling her that a lot lately and she liked it. "I just wanted to say hey," she said. "Sara?" he said uncertainly.

"I should have let you come with me. I'm sorry." she said quietly. "It's okay Sara. I understand you needed the alone time." he replied. "I had another nightmare Nick." "Are you okay?" he asked gently.

"I reached for you but you weren't there." She was quiet a moment before she continued. "I wish you were here Nick," she said honestly. "I'll be right there Sara." "No Nick. I can't ask you to drive across town. I'm fine."

Nick started to chuckle. "What's so funny?" she asked. "I can be there in 2 minutes." he said still laughing. "What?" she questioned. "I made Brass get me a room at the Hard Rock too. I'm right next door Sara." he said with satisfaction. "Nick Stokes you are way to over protective. But I'm glad. Get your sexy ass over here now!" she ordered. "I just need to put some clothes on my sexy ass and I will be there. I promise." Sara hung up the phone and smiled. She really didn't know what she'd do without him.

Sara hurried out of bed and headed to the door in one of Nick's Texas tee shirts she had secretly borrowed. A knock sounded on the door and she pulled it open. He stood there unbelievably handsome at 4:15 in the morning, in a pair of jeans and a tee shirt. His arms were folded across his chest and he looked very annoyed.

"Sara you didn't even check to see who it was." he said irritably. "Nick, Officer Woods is right there." she said waving at the policeman seated across the hall. "Sara you need to be more careful." "Fine, I'm sorry. Get your ass in here," she said, grabbing hold of his arm and yanking him in the room.

Once the door was closed, she threw her arms around his neck and held him tightly. He smiled and buried his face into her neck, inhaling her unique Sara smell. He pulled away slightly and whispered, "I've got you Sara." Her arms tightened even more around him and he felt her kiss his neck.

She pulled away after a few moments and teasingly said, "Take me to bed, handsome." "Nothing would give me greater pleasure." he said seriously, his dark eyes shining. She felt her cheeks flame red at his real meaning. She smiled at him and led him into the bedroom. "By the way nice shirt." he said with a smirk. "It is isn't it," she said with a grin.

She climbed into bed and watched with heated eyes as he striped off his tee shirt and jeans. He stood there in his boxers for a minute letting her look her fill. "God Nick," she sighed heavily. He laughed softly trying to ignore the rush of hot need the raced threw his body at her passionate gaze. He climbed into bed and rolled over to face her.

Nick reached out and gently caressed her cheek. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked. She looked away unsure of how to answer. "Sara," he prodded. She looked back at him and met his concerned brown eyes. She sighed quietly deciding to tell him what she was really feeling. "It was the nightmare from before, that monster wrapping his hands around my throat. I can remember calling you this time, struggling to get to you."

Sara stopped and closed her eyes in embarrassment. She felt his fingers gently glide across her skin. She loved that feeling. She opened her eyes and met his. He was so damn patient with her. "I need you," she whispered.

Nick's eyes widened in surprise at her confession, he hadn't expected her to be so readily honest with him. She watched his shocked reaction and made herself finish. "I've never felt this kind of need before and it scares me. I don't know how to handle what's happening between us. These feelings are all new to me Nick. And they're very intense." She watched his eyes soften at her words.

"You're not alone with your feelings Sara. I need you too. I don't think you realize how much you mean to me or how much I want us to work." He leaned over to tenderly press his lips against hers, hoping his kiss would convey all his feelings and the power of his emotions that he was unable to say just yet with words.

Sara's heart filled with happiness when she realized what he was trying to express with that intimate soul touching kiss. She was thankful he hadn't said the 3 words out loud. She wasn't quite ready to hear his affirmation. She knew what she felt for him was very strong but she was still scared to give herself to him completely.

As Nick pulled away, his eyes sought hers out. He wanted to make sure she understood the full implication of the kiss. She smiled at him tenderly and whispered, "You've gotten the closest to my heart Nick." He flashed her a grateful smile for those words. They meant a great deal to him. He knew how difficult it was for her to open up and by doing so she was slowly letting him in. He was finally breaking down the wall she had so carefully built around herself.

He kissed her lovingly on the lips and said," Let's get some sleep Darlin" "Okay baby," she playfully smiled. She snuggled in close to his protective warmth and drifted off to sleep. She knew the nightmare would not be returning. She was safe in Nick's arms.

TBC

Please review!!!!!! I'm very sorry for the delay. I may have to post shorter chapters to get them up sooner.


	19. Special Note

October 4, 2004

Special Note:

I just wanted you to know that I have not stopped writing this story. My computer died and I am in the process of trying to get everything up on the new system. I do have some chapters hand written but I need to input them. I am very sorry to all. I am extremely frustrated at this point. I hope to have something up by the beginning of next week. Please be patient. I really want to finish this story as I am sure you would like it finished. Again I am very sorry for the wait. Thanks!

Sassytoo


	20. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. I just enjoy writing about them.

I am very sorry it has taken me so long to post. My computer is still not right so it may be a while in between updates. Thanks you for you patience. Please let me know what you think of this chapter. I need some motivation to help me get through this very frustrating computer problem. Thanks!

This chapter is for all of you who are in need of a little Nick and Sara action. Enjoy!

Please note this chapter is rated R!!!!

Chapter 19

Sara slowly woke to the warm sensation of Nick's hand on her stomach. She smiled to herself before turning her head on the pillow to look at him. He was sleeping on his side facing her, with the smallest trace of a smile gracing his lips. She gently rolled to her side and felt his hand slid across her skin to her hip. He murmured her name softly in his sleep and his sexy mouth curved into a full smile.

This was the first time Sara had ever been able to study his handsome face without interruption. She couldn't help but sigh at how gorgeous he looked while he slept. His face was a mixture of masculine curves and angles from the smooth line of his forehead to his sexy cheekbones to his strong chin. His thick dark eyelashes lay smoothly against his tanned skin and his mouth, god how she loved that, whether he was giving her a sexy smirk, pouting at her or kissing her senseless. In her opinion he was one of the most handsome men she had ever met.

That thought alone scared her. She had a difficult time accepting he was attracted to her. As she laid there she could feel her doubts beginning to crowd her mind. She groaned inwardly, fighting her sensible side that told her she and Nick were moving too fast. She knew she was being unreasonable. She and Nick had known each other for 4 years. They were friends. In fact he was her closest friend. What they had together was a strong solid friendship; a friendship that was now beginning to change into something very genuine with extremely intense emotions.

But even though she was scared, she knew in her heart that she wanted it. She was ready to give herself completely to him. For the first time in her life she felt truly close to another person. She had opened up her soul to him and he in return had done the same. She had never felt such powerful passion for a man before. She had trusted him with her heart and now she wanted to give him the rest of herself.

Sara was ready to make love with him. She knew Nick would be gentle with her and her fragile emotions. It would not be just sex with him. It would be so much more. Part of her was scared that when they finally came together she would lose herself completely to him. She was in love with him and being with him so intimately would make it very real. She would be in her first serious adult relationship. There would not be an escape clause. For better or worse she would have to readjust her life. Her career could not be the center of her world anymore. Their relationship would be. He would be.

Deep down in her heart she knew that Nick Stokes was everything she wanted in a man. She could easily see herself spending the rest of her life with him. He made her happy and it was time for her to grab a hold of that happiness. It was time to let Nick know how much he meant to her.

Sara let her emotions fill her as she reached out to touch the softness of his spiky dark brown hair. She loved running her hands through it. She slowly ran her finger down his cheek feeling the roughness of his whiskers beneath her fingertip. Her finger then found its way to his mouth where she gently traced the outline of his sexy lips.

Sara watched as his beautiful brown eyes fluttered open. They stared at each other for a moment before she leaned forward to touch her lips to his. Her mouth slid leisurely over his until her need for more became unbearable. She moved closer to him, feeling his hand leave her hip to glide across her skin to her lower back.

Both her hands found their way into his hair as she grasped his head to pull him closer. Their kiss deepened as their passion began to quickly build. His hand gently caressed her heated skin as his other hand wound itself in her silky tresses. Their tongues teased one another enticingly.

Without conscious thought, Sara moved her body until she was straddling his waist. She could feel both of his hands on her hips now, softly squeezing her flesh. Her lips left his to suckle his neck, while her hands roamed seductively over his broad chest. He growled her name and she could feel the deep vibrations underneath her fingertips. She stopped her ministrations for a moment to meet his eyes. His dark eyes burned passionately with hot desire. She knew he was about to try to stop her seductive advances so she cut off his words with a heated kiss.

Nick felt his will power leave him when her hot hungry mouth claimed his again. He quickly forgot all the reasons he had for wanting to wait. His only thought was that he wanted to show her how much he loved her.

He released his hold on her hips to glide his hands over the soft skin of her back. He felt her moan of approval against his neck as she began to slide herself seductively over his aroused body. His hungry mouth sought hers out again as his hands moved across her skin. She moaned in pleasure, pressing closer to him. His hands felt wonderful on her heated flesh. His fingers moved excruciatingly slow as they slid up the sides of her body. Sara wanted to yell out in frustration at his leisurely torture.

Sara's mouth tore away from his when she felt his fingers brush the undersides of her breasts. They were both breathing heavily from their sizzling kisses. Their eyes locked hotly and Sara shuttered from the lustful intensity in Nick's dark eyes. "Please Nick," she hissed, "Touch me!" "My pleasure," he growled before seductively cupping her aching mounds in his hot hands. She moaned his name in heated rapture. When she felt his thumbs glide softly across her most sensitive area, she threw back her head in ecstasy and pressed herself down on him fully.

Nick's eyes widened at the sudden sensation and he cried out, "God Sara." She pulled herself out of his hot hands and sat up. She reached down for the hem of her shirt and yanked it off, tossing it onto the floor. She only gave him a moment to gaze at her beautiful flushed body before she leaned down and slowly slid her naked chest up his.

Nick's eyes rolled back in his head at the arousing sensation and he growled her name. Her hungry lips were on his again as she began to move her body seductively over his. He growled again but this time in frustration. He wanted to be able to roll her over and take control but he knew he would not be able to support his weight on his hurt shoulder. In a few more days he would be better but for now he would have to let Sara do most of the work.

Nick felt her hot body sliding down his. Her lips were raining scorching kisses on his neck and chest. As her tongue darted out to taste his nipples a shot of white hot pleasure raced through his whole body. At that moment he decided it might not be so bad to let Sara take control.

He laced his fingers through her silky hair and closed his eyes enjoying the sensation of her hungry mouth on his overheated skin. When he felt her hot breath on his belly button, he knew he had to stop for a few minutes or he'd never make it.

Nick pushed himself up and Sara looked at him in surprise. "I need to kiss you again," he whispered hotly. She smiled at him as she moved to capture his mouth. His hands quickly found their way to her breasts and she moaned his name. Wanting more she pulled away from him, giving him a sexy grin as she sat up on her knees.

Nick smiled at her offering. His mouth latched on hungrily, as she threaded her fingers through his soft hair. One of Nick's hands made its way to her sexy firm ass. His fingers softly glided across her silky panties. She felt his hand slide agonizingly slow to her inner thigh. The sensation of his hot hand so close to her aching center and his amazing mouth on her breasts sent waves of pleasure racing through her body. She arched her back in passion and hissed his name. She was so close. She knew if he touched her, she would fall over the edge.

The sound of the cell phone ringing brought her crashing back to reality. She shook her head trying to clear her lust filled mind. Nick pulled away slowly with disappointment clearly etched on his face. "We have to answer that," she breathed heavily. "I know," he groaned, reaching for the phone. "Hello," he growled into the phone. "Ah no you didn't wake us. We've been up for a little while.....No we're not bored. You know Sara she hates sitting around. She's been keeping me busy," he said waggling his eyebrows at her.

Nick watched her with heated eyes as her cheeks flushed with more color. He tried to focus on what Grissom was saying on the other end of the phone but Sara was too much of a distraction. She sat there on her knees, watching him with passion filled eyes. Her skin was flushed, her lips swollen from his kisses and her pert breasts looked thoroughly ravished. He had never seen her look more beautiful.

He had to smile to himself when she suddenly realized he had been observing her nakedness. She crossed her arms trying to cover herself and her face flamed red. She reached over the side of the bed frantically searching for the thrown shirt. Finally finding it, she turned away from him to slip it on.

Nick only caught part of what Grissom had said and had to ask him to repeat it. "Sorry Gris what was that? Sara was distracting me...Okay that's fine....We just need to grab a bite to eat....An hours good....See you." As he hung up the phone she turned to face him with worried eyes. "It's not our guy. Archie and Hodges are out sick with the flu. He needs some extra hands in the lab." Relief immediately filled her face. "So I was distracting you on the phone?'" she smirked.

Nick slid toward her slowly with a playful grin on his face. "Darlin' you have no idea how incredibly enticing you looked sitting there on your knees. You are so damn beautiful Sara." "Nick," she breathed hotly. He was on her in an instant, his mouth pressed hungrily against hers.

Sara ran her hands across the muscles of his back and groaned. His body felt absolutely amazing. She couldn't wait to explore every inch of it with her fingers and mouth. The things he could do with his lips, she could only image what his expert mouth would feel like on the rest of her body.

Minutes ticked by as they continued to explore each other's mouths. Nick finally broke the fiery kisses. "God I want you so bad," he breathed. She smiled at him and touched his cheek. "I want you too Nick," she sighed. He stood up slowly trying to discreetly readjust himself. Sara's face flushed and she had to turn her head away.

"I'd better call room service. Do you want your usual?" Nick asked. Sara smiled and nodded as she stood up to grab a change of clothes from her overnight bag. She stopped in the doorway when she heard he hang up the phone. She turned her head to look back at him. He was watching her intently. She had never been much of a seductress but with Nick she felt comfortable. She dropped her stuff onto the floor and reached for the hem of the shirt.

She pulled it up slowly, feeling the heat of his dark eyes burning her skin. She turned her head to give him a seductive smile as she purred, "Do you want to wash my back?"

Nick stood there motionless. His breath caught in his throat as his eyes roamed over the alluring sight of her incredibly flawless back. Her creamy white skin seemed to glow. His eyes slowly followed the curves and angles of her back down to the sexy view of her very fine ass in her silky panties. His eyes continued their journey settling on her amazingly long, lithe legs. She was absolutely stunning. "Damn Darlin' if you're not the most breathtaking woman I've ever seen."

Sara felt her heart fill with emotion at his words. No one had ever said anything like that to her before. She felt beautiful and desirable for the first time in her life. She smiled at him lovingly and whispered,"Thank you." He moved toward her with a single thought in his mind. He needed to feel her in his arms. The ringing of the cell phone stopped him in his tracks.

"Damn it," he growled as he retraced his steps back to the phone. "Yeah," he answered hurriedly. His eyes shot back to her. She was still watching him over her shoulder. She gave him a sexy smile before she slowly slid her panties down her legs. He stifled a groan as she bent over to pick them up. He felt a rush of pure hot lust shoot right through his body.

Nick watched her disappear into the bathroom as he hurried across the room. He could vaguely hear Warrick calling his name. He realized he hadn't answered him. "Sorry man. Something just came up. I'll call you back." he muttered as he flipped the phone shut. He looked down at his tented boxers in amusement. Something was up all right.

Nick stood there a moment trying to get control of his raging libido. He watched her open the frosted glass door of the shower and turn the water on. She turned slightly to gaze at him, giving him a beautiful look at the profile of her sexy body. He watched mesmerized as she climbed into the shower and stepped under the spray of the water. He groaned lustfully as he watched the drops of water rolled seductively down her alluring body.

Sara gave him a come and get me grin and he willed his over stimulated body to move. He hadn't moved three steps before a loud knock sounded on the door. He closed his eyes in defeat. He opened his eyes and met her confused ones. She hadn't heard the knock. "Someone's knocking on the door," he said apologetically. He watched as the passion left her eyes and disappointment took its place. "I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "Rain check?" she asked. "You can count on it Darlin," he said with a huge grin.

Sara watched as he turned to leave. She couldn't help but smile at his slumped shoulders and defeated walk. He was as frustrated as she was. She closed the door and sighed. She turned the water colder trying to cool her overheated skin. God how she wanted to feel his hands on her, to taste his hungry mouth and to feel his hard sexy body pressed up against hers. She felt the disappointment race through her body. It looked like they were going to have to wait after all. She didn't know if she could make it through the shift if he were in touching distance. She wanted him desperately. She wanted to show him how she felt about him. It was going to be a long, unbearable night.

TBC

Please review.


	21. Chapter 20

Thanks for the great reviews. The next chapter or so will be a transition chapter. So please bear with me. I need to establish a timeline and I can't rush the sequence of events. I promise to get to the good stuff soon. Thanks for sticking with the story.

Chapter 20

Nick closed his eyes and laid his head back against the couch in the break room. He had 1 more hour left of what seemed like an endless shift. He had spent the entire night processing video evidence for a case Archie was working on. He hadn't seen Sara at all and he was feeling a little dejected.

Things had been left unresolved between them and he was still trying to get his over-stimulated libido back under control. In other words, he was still extremely horny. He thought back to what had almost happened between them. Fate had definitely not been on his side.

Nick couldn't erase the image of Sara, with her come and get me grin, as she stood underneath the shower spray. It kept playing over and over in his mind. Needless to say, he had been very distracted all night long. The only thought in Nick's head at the moment was going home with Sara and hopefully finishing what they started.

Hearing his name huskily whispered Nick's eyes flew open to find Sara standing a few feet away, watching him intently with a sexy smirk on her face. She raised an eyebrow at him as she strolled toward him. "Hey," she said as she stopped in front of him. Nick smiled up at her and replied, "Hey Darlin long night?"

"Extremely and you?' she asked as she straddled her legs over his and sat in his lap facing him. He smiled at her bold action and nodded his head. She brought her hand up to caress his cheek. Their eyes locked hotly. "Miss me?" she whispered. "Unbelievably," he answered. "Good," she smiled. She leaned in closer to him, letting her warm breath caress his face. Their lips were mere inches apart when she whispered, "I missed you too."

A sexy grin crossed his handsome face as he closed the distance between them. He captured her lips in a soft, tender kiss. He slowly slid his hand up her thigh only to have her fingers clamp down on his wrist to halt his sensual journey. Sara pulled away slowly, her chocolate brown eyes dancing with desire. "No wandering hands Nick. I'm already at my breaking point." He waggled his eyebrows suggestively and said, "So you're as horny as I am then?"

Sara's face flushed pink and she laughed softly, "I haven't been able to concentrate all night. Every time I close my eyes all I can see is you in your boxer briefs." Nick leaned in close and whispered hotly in her ear, "And all I can see is you naked and wet." His tongue darted out of his mouth to taste the backside of her earlobe. A burst of white hot heat shot through Sara's body at his intimate touch.

Nick growled softly as she ran her hands down his chest. She stopped when she reached the button of his jeans. She met his eyes and knew he was feeling as hot and bothered as she was. He groaned her name before capturing her lips with a hungry kiss.

The sound of someone clearing his throat brought them crashing back to reality. Brass stood there with a grin on his face. "I hate to break up the love connection you two have going yet again." He paused with a smirk knowing he had done the same thing earlier at the hotel based on Nick's disgruntled appearance when he had answered the door. "But I have some disappointing news," Brass continued. Sara slid off Nick's lap and they both looked at him with raised eyebrows.

"The sheriff decided he didn't want to put the two of you up for the night again." "I knew it wouldn't last," Nick muttered. "I need to go home anyway," Sara replied. "I'll need to stop by my place to get some clothes," Nick said as Sara smiled knowingly at him.

"Not so fast Nick, the sheriff wants you back at your house. Alone." Brass stated. "What?" Nick and Sara said in unison. "He wants each of you at your own residences. You'll both be under police surveillance at all times." Brass answered. "No way Jim! I don't want Sara alone. It's too dangerous." Nick said furiously.

"I understand Nick, but the sheriff wants to see if we can flush this guy out. He may try something at either one of your places if he knows you back. Don't worry we'll have double the protection at Sara's. I understand your apprehension Nick but we need to make a move. We can't wait around for this guy to kill again." Brass finished.

Nick stood up and began to pace. He didn't like it one bit. The situation was too risky and Sara could easily get hurt or worse killed. He glanced over at Sara realizing she had yet to say a word. She was staring into space with an annoyed expression on her face. He raised a curious eyebrow in her direction. She turned and looked at Brass. "How long does he want us to do this?" she asked quietly. "A few days at the least," he answered. The scowl on Sara's face deepened. "Listen I'll give you guys a few minutes to talk about it. I'll be back to take you both home." With that said Brass headed out the door.

Sara stood up and growled, "A few days!" Nick looked at her in confusion until he suddenly realized what she was so upset about. They were not going to be able to see each other outside of work. That meant no alone time and definitely no finishing what they started anytime soon. He groaned silently.

Nick met Sara's livid eyes and had to grin. "This is so not funny Nick!" Sara fumed. "I know Sar but realizing you want me that bad makes it a little more bearable." he said with a sexy smirk. "Nick Stokes you have to be the most conceited man I know." Sara growled. "And you have the major hots for me," he teased. "How do you know I was upset about that? I could be upset for having to be under constant police surveillance." Sara said tersely. "Oh no Darlin, you want me and you're pissed because you can't have me. You have to wait and you hate waiting. Poor, impatient Sara" Nick replied with a knowing grin.

Sara glared at him for a moment before walking towards him slowly. A small dangerous smile began to dance across her lips. Nick swallowed nervously. He had pushed her too far. "Nick," she murmured ardently. His eyes widened slightly when she slid her hot hands up his chest, glided them slowly up his neck and onto his cheeks. She stroked her fingertips softly across his lips as she heatedly whispered. "You're just so damn sexy baby." She weaved her fingers through his soft, brown hair. His dark eyes watched as desire filled her chocolate brown ones and her tongue darted out of her mouth to moisten her sexy pouty lips. "You're all I can think about," she breathed letting her hot breath caress his neck. "I want to touch you, kiss you, lick you...Everywhere Nick!" she growled passionately.

Sara felt Nick's body tremble at her words. She pulled his face down to hers and captured his mouth in a scorching kiss. She seductively slid her body against his, rubbing her breasts up and down his chest. She felt him groan against her mouth. Her hands left his hair to trail leisurely down his muscular back. She felt his hands tighten their hold on her waist as her mouth and body continued to seduce his.

Sara's hands finally reached their destination and settled possessively on his extremely fine ass. Without warning one of her hands snaked around to his front side and cupped him firmly through his jeans. Nick's whole body jerked in response as he tore his mouth away from hers gasping for air. "Jesus Sara," he moaned as he felt her hand begin to stroke him. "Do you want me?" she whispered. "Hell yeah!" he growled. "How bad Nick? To the point where you could explode?" she hissed as she squeezed him lovingly in her hot hand. Nick's eyes slammed closed and grabbed her wrist to stop her from finishing what she had set out to do. She had almost succeeded.

"Nick," she said softly. His eyes opened slowly as he tried to get his over stimulated body back under control. His eyes gradually focused on her serious face. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let it go so far. I just got caught up in passion and the heat. You do that to me." she said solemnly. "No Darlin I shouldn't have teased you about being impatient. I feel the same way you do." He said before kissing her tenderly on the lips.

Sara looked at him with worried eyes and said, "I don't know what I'm going to do. I like having you near me when I sleep." He smiled at her and said, "Call me. At least then you can hear my voice." "Are you sure?" she asked.

Nick nodded his head and gave her a smirk. "You know I've heard phone sex is not so bad. I can just imagine how sexy and husky your voice would sound as you gave me a play by play of what you were doing to yourself." He said with a waggle of his eyebrows.

Sara face flamed red as she punched him in the arm. "Nick Stokes you are absolutely incorrigible." "I am aren't I?" he said laughing. He pulled her into a hug and whispered, "It's only because I think you're the most breathtaking woman I've ever met and I can't wait to make endless love to you." She laughed as she hugged him tighter.

Just then Brass walked in and sighed. "After this is over you two need to take a long vacation to get all this hugging and kissing stuff out of your systems." Brass said with a grin. "Sorry," Sara said sheepishly. "I can't help myself Jim. She's irresistible." Nick grinned. Sara elbowed him in the stomach as her face flushed with embarrassment. "Ow Darlin. I was only telling the truth." Nick grumbled rubbing his stomach.

"Come you two love birds lets go." Brass said heading toward the door. Sara glared at Nick for a moment before following Brass out the door. "Come on Darlin. You can't be mad at me for saying that." Nick cried as he headed out after her.

The car ride to Sara's was surprisingly quiet. As they pulled into the parking lot Nick told Brass he was going to walk Sara to her door. "I figured as much. Just don't get too carried away with the smooching." Brass said with a smirk on his face. Sara mumbled a quick thanks as she scurried out of the car, embarrassment coloring her face. "I'll try and control myself." Nick said with a grin.

They walked hand and hand up to her apartment. They stopped outside her door and looked at each other. "You want to come in and check it out yourself?" Sara said with a knowing smile. Nick chuckled and nodded his head. "It would make me feel better." He said with a slight grin.

"It would make me feel better too Nick," she responded seriously. He smiled at her and brought her hand up to his lips, kissing it gently. Sara unlocked the door. They headed inside searching each room together. Finally satisfied that everything was safe, Nick walked with Sara to the front door. He pulled her into a loving hug.

Nick's hands caressed her back gently, as he whispered, "Please call me if you need anything Sara. I mean it." She leaned back and searched his eyes finding sincerity and love clearly etched there. Her eyes filled with tears. "Darlin what is it?" he worriedly asked. "Nick I....," she couldn't say what her heart deeply wanted her too, so instead she said, "I'll miss you." "I'll miss you too." He brought his lips down to tenderly meet hers.

Nick pulled away reluctantly and said, "I'd better go or I'll never hear the end of it from Brass." She smiled at him as she wiped at her eyes. He reached out to softly caress her cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand letting his gentle loving touch fill her. She opened her eyes and met his dark ones. At that moment his eyes seemed to speak volumes. She could feel his love surrounding her, caressing her, warming her and she let it consume her.

Nick watched as acceptance filled Sara's face. Her face slowly lit up into a beautiful smile. Then with the softest of whispers he heard two amazing words. "Me too." Nick felt his heart expand in his chest. It wasn't a full declaration of love but it was enough for him. He smiled at her happily and whispered, "Me too." back.

Sara grasped his face in her hands and kissed him thoroughly on the lips. Pulling away slightly, she whispered, "Go." Nick stepped away from her and said, "I'll see you tonight. Promise me you'll call." She nodded her head and answered, "I promise." He turned and opened the door turning to look at her one last time. "Be safe," he said and then he was gone.

Sara went to the door, turned the lock and slid the deadbolt into place. Just then the door handle shook. She heard Nick's voice on the other side as he yelled, "Good girl, I was just checking." She laughed at his over protectiveness. But her laughter quickly turned to sadness. Nick was gone and she was all alone to face the nightmares. She silently prayed that they would not come but she knew they were waiting, waiting to show her how helpless and powerless she really was. She shuttered knowing Nick was not going to be there to save her.

TBC


	22. Chapter 21

Thanks for the great reviews yet again. They do motivate me so keep them coming please. This chapter is so-so. I tried to get it posted quick so I didn't take the time I usually do to edit. Sorry!  
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story.

Chapter 21

Three days had turned into four and Nick was at his breaking point. He needed to be with Sara. Their brief encounters at work were not enough. He wanted to be able to hold her without interruption, to kiss her to the point of passionate surrender and to touch her till she found her sweet release. His desire for her was overwhelming him.

Work had become stressful, not just for the two of them but for the team. There had been no new murders related to Sara's case. It was like the suspect had disappeared. They were walking on egg shells waiting for the worst to happen. No one was sure whether to be relieved that nothing had happened or preparing him/her self for a tragedy.

Sara had been especially tense during this time but as promised she had called him. Each phone call seemed to last longer then the last, neither of them wanting to break the only connection they had between them. Nick had never been a big phone person but his conversations with Sara seemed effortless. He was thankful for their talks because he and Sara had gotten closer. They traded stories of their childhood, their adolescents and their college years. Nick realized that they might not have shared these memories so easily if they had been face to face. Their physical attraction would have taken precedence over everything else.

As each day passed he felt their relationship getting that much stronger. He had never opened himself up to another person like he had Sara. He had never loved a woman like he did her and he knew he never would again. She was it for him and if he trusted his heart he was pretty sure she felt the same way.

Sara was on the edge. Days had passed and nothing had happened. She knew in her heart that it was not over. He was playing with her. She tried not to let Nick know how anxious she really was but he knew her very well. He could instantly read her face when he saw her and now he could decipher the tone of her voice when they talked on the phone. She had to smile at that. A month ago she would have been completely freaked out that someone could understand her so well but now it was a huge comfort. She loved that Nick knew her so well, that he accepted her along with all of her insecurities and even with that knowledge he still wanted her.

She was thinking about these things as she walked down the hall and these thoughts were what prompted her to grab him and pull him into an empty room when she saw him heading her way. Nick put up no fight when Sara seized him in a passionate embrace. All thoughts left their heads. The only thing that existed was the two of them and their need for one another.

Within moments, Sara had hurriedly unbuttoned his shirt. Her hands were caressing his muscular chest while his hands had found their way under her shirt and were stroking her breasts. Their mouths were locked in a heated kiss. This was how Grissom found them.

Needless to say, Grissom was furious. Neither Nick nor Sara had ever seen him so angry. He threatened to suspend them both without pay for their poor and tasteless conduct in their place of employment. He told them in very clear terms that if it ever happened again one of them would be moved to another shift. He would not tolerate such blatant disregard to the rules. With an icy glare and disdain in his voice he told them to go home for the night before he stormed out the door.

Sara was mortified at being caught in such a compromising position. She hastily scrambled to straighten her clothes as she headed toward the door. "Sara where the hell are you going?" Nick demanded. "I need to talk to Grissom Nick. I need to explain to him." She rambled. "Explain what Sara? That we're extremely horny and that we're going to explode if we don't f..."

"Nick stop it!" Sara cut in. Nick shook his head and sighed. "Sara I don't understand why you need to explain anything to him at all. We shouldn't have let it get to the point that it did. It won't happen again. But he definitely over reacted. If you go talk to him you're just going to upset him more."

"Nick please it's something I need to do." Nick opened his mouth to protest but the look on her face stopped him. "Fine," he said as he closed the distance between them. He cupped her face gently and kissed her tenderly on the lips. "Do you want me to wait?" he asked. She shook her head no and said, "I'll call you later. Okay?" "Sure," he answered looking away. "Nick," she whispered. He turned back to meet her worried brown eyes. "It's you and only you." she quietly said. "I know Darlin it's just that I ..." She cut him off before he could finish. "I know," she said. "Sara," he sighed in frustration. "Not yet Nick please." she begged.

"When then Sara?" he demanded. Her eyes pleaded with him as she backed away from him. "Soon," she whispered before she disappeared out the door. He slammed his hand against the door frame as he watched her retreating form. "I love you and I want to be able to tell you." he growled. He ran his hand threw his hair and kicked at a stool. It toppled over to the ground with a large crash. So much for thinking Grissom was out of the picture.

Catherine stuck her head in the doorway. "Everything okay?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Nick just looked at her and shrugged. "It wouldn't have anything to do with Grissom's sudden warpath would it?" she asked with a slight smirk. "He caught us in a very compromising position." he said sheepishly. "And Sara went chasing after him to explain?" Catherine asked. "Hell yeah," Nick growled.

"Nicky,' Catherine started as she walked toward him laying a comforting hand on his arm, "They have this thing between them. I don't understand it. You don't understand it and they sure as hell don't understand it. But it's there. It has nothing to do with love and desire. It's more of an intellectual battle of wills. Sara wants his respect. She wants to be on the same level as him and for reasons I don't understand he keeps letting her get so close and then he slams the door in her face. She'll eventually realize she doesn't need Grissom's approval for everything. Just give her time."

Nick grunted and turned away. Catherine couldn't help but smile at the pout that graced Nick's handsome face. "Nick look at me," Catherine said. He turned slowly to face her still glowering. "You have nothing to worry about. I've seen the way Sara looks at you. Believe me when I say this she's got it bad for you." "You think so?" he asked tentatively. "Nick how does she kiss you?" A huge smile crossed his face. "You're right. I'm just being foolish. She's got the major hots for me." he said with a grin. Catherine laughed and said "Yeah she's almost as bad as you."

"I'm not that obvious am I?" he asked. "Nick if a man looked at me in the same way that you look at Sara I'd be happy for the rest of my life." Catherine said with a sincere smile. "Thanks Cath," Nick said. "Go home and get some sleep. You two are going to be fine. I promise." With that said Catherine headed out the door.

Nick sighed as he followed her out. He wished he could shake the feeling of unease that had settled heavily in his gut, but he couldn't. Something was going to happen and he hoped he would be strong enough to handle it for Sara's sake.

TBC


	23. Chapter 22

Just a note: Thanks for the reviews on my last chapter. I really didn't like it, so your positive feedback helped me write this one. Thanks!

Also kudos to the RED Sox's for winning the World Series!!!! What a great comeback!

Chapter 22

Sara was furious as she stormed down the hallway. How dare he treat them that way? She stood outside his doorway for a moment trying to get her resentment back under control. She took a deep breath and pushed his door open. Grissom looked up from the file he was reading ready to reprimand whoever it was that had barged into his office unannounced. He sucked in his breath when he saw her standing there in all her furious glory. He had never seen her look more beautiful.

Sara stood there with her hands on her hips, her lovely face flushed and her dark eyes sparking with anger. "Is there a problem Sara?" he asked evenly as he met her heated glare. She raised an eyebrow at him before shutting the door with a resounding bang. She advanced on him stopping on the opposite side of his desk. Her dark brown eyes held his steely blue ones for a moment.

"There's a problem all right!' she grumbled as she leaned down and placed both of her hands on his desk, all the while never breaking eye contact with him. "YOU- You're the problem." she growled. His eyes widened in surprise as he subconsciously leaned away from her and her livid glare. Maintaining his ever so infuriating righteousness he calmly said, "I don't remember humiliating myself with a coworker in one of the labs. I do believe you did that all on your own Sara."

Sara pulled herself up to her full height, her eyes flashed dangerously with fury. Grissom could feel the temperature drop drastically in the room He braced himself. Sara Sidle was pissed. "Don't you push this on to me Grissom." she hissed. "That night you brought me home from the police station you made your choice. You made it perfectly clear how you felt. You didn't let me have any say in the matter so you sure as hell don't have any say in the choice that I've made now."

"Sara this has nothing to do with me. It has everything to do with you and Nick and your disgraceful conduct." he chided. "That's bullshit and you know it! Nick and I were in a closed room. There were no windows and the door was shut. No one saw us. You purposely walked in on us!" she growled.

"And if I hadn't of walked in would you have let him taken you right there on the table?" Grissom spat venomously. Sara reeled back like she had been slapped. "I never...Nick would never...How can you think that of me?" she choked out.

With narrowed eyes Grissom said, " You're not who I thought you were." Sara's eyes filled with tears at his hurtful words. "No thank God! I'm nothing like you!" she cried as she wheeled around to escape the suddenly too small office. She faltered at the door. She knew she needed to tell him what was in her heart. It was now or never. She turned slowly to face him. His face was a mask of indignation. His blues eyes stared at her with icy coolness.

"Grissom," she sighed warily, her eyes softening as she looked at him. "For the longest time you were the center of my world. I wanted so much for you to see me, to love me. But I could never reach you, no matter how hard I tried. I thought it was my fault that I wasn't pretty enough or smart enough for you. It took me a long time to realize that it wasn't me. It was you who couldn't reach out to me." She stopped and gazed into his sad blue eyes. "I thought you and the lab would be enough, that I would be happy with just being near you and taking what little affection you could offer me. I was so wrong. There is so much more to life and Nick has shown me that. For the first time in my life I want more Grissom. I want to be in a relationship with a man who's not afraid to love and who's not scared to experience life head on. I want to get married. I want to have a baby or two. I want a family to love and who loves me back. I want Nick to be the man that I experience these things with." She stopped and looked at him with hope and sorrow in her eyes.

Grissom just stared at her, the hurt obvious in his eyes. "Sara I don't think Nick is the right man for you." he said softly. A small smile played across her lips. "Grissom you don't understand. I've told Nick all my secrets and all of my fears. And guess what? He still wants me. He loves me. I can see it in his eyes. I can feel it in his touch. He's not afraid of his love for me. It surrounds me. It makes me feel safe and wonderful. I can't imagine anything more right then that. For the first time in my life I'm not scared of my future."

Grissom came around his desk and tentatively stepped toward her. "Sara please," he said. She shook her head remorsefully, "Can't you just be happy for Nick and I?" she asked quietly. He looked in her pleading brown eyes and couldn't answer her. She was finally walking away from him and he wasn't sure if he could let her go because he could feel his heart breaking into a million little pieces.

Sara could see the inner battle raging behind his blue eyes. She knew she had to say the words out loud in order for him to accept what she was saying. She also knew that by doing so she would be changing their relationship forever. She reached up and touched his cheek. His skin was like ice. He flinched when he felt the scorching heat of her fingertips.

"I'm in love with Nick. He makes me very happy. I'm sorry Gil." He closed his eyes as his name passed between her lips. He savored the sound of it, committing it to memory. He had always dreamed of her whispering it. He leaned into her touch for a moment before pulling away from her. His stomach had knotted itself up into a tight ball. He struggled for something to say. He turned away unable to take the pity he saw in her eyes. "Just watch how you conduct yourself in the future Sara." he said tersely. "Gil?" she questioned sadly.

He turned to face her, his stone facade back in place. "Close the door on your way out Sara. I need to finish this and I don't want any more interruptions." Sara watched him go back to his desk and sit down. He immediately started reading the case file in front of him. He would not look at her. She sighed sadly willing the tears not to come until she was outside the lab. She whispered, "I'm sorry." one last time before she shut the door quietly behind her.

After waiting a moment to make sure she was really gone, Grissom looked up at the closed door. The door signified exactly what had just happened. She had finally shut the door on him. It was over. A single tear rolled down his cheek. He wiped it away. It was all he would allow himself to grieve. If he wanted to keep his 'family' together, he would have to find a way to deal with Nick and Sara's relationship. He sighed sadly and went back to what he knew best- his job.

As Sara walked out to her SUV, she knew it would be a very long time before she and Grissom would be comfortable with one another. Their once close working relationship was now a thing of the past. She climbed into the vehicle and let her tears come. She cried tears of sadness for the love she had lost and she cried tears of happiness for the love that she had found. As she sat there she realized she needed to hear Nick's voice. She needed to feel Nick's arms around her. She needed to feel Nick's love. She smiled to herself. It was time to show Nick how much she loved him.

She pulled out her cell and punched in Brass's number. "Brass," answered a voice over the phone. "Hey it's Sara. I need a favor."

"Shoot," he said. "I know that it's important to the case that I go home but I need to see Nick." she said with earnestness. "Oh really," he said with a chuckle in his voice. Sara pursed her lips fighting a smile.

"Yeah really. Can you help me?" she replied. "Anything for you Sara. Where are you?" Brass answered.

"I'm in the CSI parking lot." "I'll be there in 5." "Thanks Jim." "Anything for true love Sara." Brass said before clicking off. Sara couldn't help but smile as his words.

Within 20 minutes Sara was standing in front of Nick Stokes door with a duffel bag in hand and a stomach full of butterflies. She glanced over at Brass who had insisted on driving her over. "I'm sure Nick will give you a ride back to the lab," he had said with a knowing grin. She grinned at him before turning back to the door. She hoped the time would finally be right for her and Nick. She steadied her nerves and rang the bell.

TBC

Sorry to leave you hanging at such a critical point. I hope to update soon. Please let me know what you think about Grissom and Sara's confrontation. I would love to hear both positive and (hopefully very few) negative comments. Thanks!


	24. Chapter 23

Please note this chapter is rated R! This is for all of those readers who have been patiently waiting for the big moment. Hope you enjoy. Thanks!!

Chapter 23

Nick's doorbell rang, startling him. He glanced at the clock. He hadn't been home very long and couldn't figure out who would be at his door so early in the morning. Glancing in the peephole, his eyes widened in surprise when he saw Sara standing there, he hurriedly opened the door with a worried expression on his face.

Sara grinned when she saw his concerned face. "I'm fine," she smiled. She turned to wave at the car parked in his driveway. Brass stuck his head out the window and yelled, "She's all yours Nick. I know you'll take good care of her. See you later." With that said, Brass backed out of the driveway.

Nick's eyes returned to Sara's smiling face and then down to the duffel bag clutched tightly in her hand. His curious eyes met hers. "Are you going to invite me in?" she asked with a smirk. "Yeah, sure. I'm sorry." he stammered stepping aside to let her in.

Sara, however, had other ideas. She advanced on him claiming his mouth in a hungry kiss. Nick lost all conscious thought when he felt her mouth on his. He threaded his hands in her hair, pressed himself fully against her and groaned loudly.

After exchanging heated kisses for a few moments, Sara pulled away and huskily said, "I can't wait any longer. I want you now Nick." Nick's mouth curled into a sexy grin. "You read my mind Darlin." he said as his mouth devoured hers. He maneuvered her body into the house and closed the door with a slam.

* * *

**_He had only been home for a few hours and his desire to see Sara was at a breaking point. It had taken him longer then anticipated to track her down. But he had and now as he sat across the street watching her and that man, fury filled his body. He wanted to wrap his hands around someone's neck and squeeze as he watched Sara kiss the unworthy Nick Stokes. She was throwing herself at an undeserving man, just like she had in SanFransisco. He knew she'd never change, once a whore always a whore. He needed to show her that real men liked submissive women, not aggressive sluts. She needed to feel his hands around her throat to understand. She would learn that he had all the power. He could hear her now begging him not to hurt her. But he was going to hurt her. He ached to hear her scream. She was going to feel the same amount of pain that she had made him feel. It was payback time.  
_**

* * *

**_  
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Nick was in heaven with the feel of Sara's mouth on his and her hands caressing his body. She pulled away from him panting heavily. "I needed to see you," she whispered with a small grin. "Good because I needed to see you too." he said hotly before capturing her mouth in another explosive kiss.

He pulled her down the hall. They stumbled against the walls as they went, neither wanting to break the kiss. Once inside his bedroom, he urgently pressed her up against the wall. He pulled his mouth off her, breathing hotly as he reached for the hem of her shirt. "I've been waiting years to do this," he said huskily as he yanked her shirt up over her head.

Sara smirked at him for a moment before saying, "So have I baby." She grasped his button up shirt with both hands and yanked ardently. The sound of tiny buttons hitting the floor filled the room. Nick had to laugh at her passionate display. "Oh is that how it's going to be?" he asked with a sexy smirk. Sara smiled as she ran her hands up his incredible chest and gently pushed the shirt off of his shoulders. It dropped soundlessly to the floor. Her eyes traveled up his amazing body and she was greeted by his lust filled eyes. "Maybe," she answered as she brought her hands up to caress his cheeks. "But I have to tell you something first."

His hands stopped stroking her arms when he saw the serious look on her face. She gave him a reassuring smile before she continued. "You were right. My talk with Grissom didn't go well. But I was finally able to tell him how I really feel, so now there's no doubt in his mind." Nick braced himself for her words, words he wasn't sure he wanted to hear.

Sara gave him a nervous smile and her cheeks flushed with color. She looked him deeply in the eyes and said, "I told him I was in love with you." Nick blinked once, then twice before he stammered, "What did you say?"

Sara's smile faltered just a little bit and a tiny grain of doubt began to run through her mind. Didn't he want this? She felt him grip her arms as he said, "Sara?" As she looked into his eyes she could see a spark of hope dancing there. With that look her worries vanished. "I said I'm in love with you." she quietly repeated.

Sara watched the most wonderful smile spread across his handsome face and his eyes lit up with pure happiness. "You're in love with me?" he asked incredulously. She smiled in pleasure as she answered, "Yes."

"Well Darlin I'm really happy to hear that," he said as his Texas accent became more pronounced. He reached up and took her face in his hands and continued, "Cause I've been tryin' to tell you for days now that I'm head over hells in love with you Sara."

Sara's eyes filled with tears as she looked into his loving eyes. "Say it again Nick," she whispered. "I love Sara. You're the best thing that as ever happened to me." She gave him the most radiant smile he had ever seen. She pulled him tightly against her body and whispered in his ear, "I love you so much Nick. I've never felt this way about anyone. You make me so happy." "You make me happy too." he whispered back as he gently kissed her neck.

She pulled away from him slowly and met his eyes with a passionate gaze. "I want to show you how much I love you. I want to completely surround you with it." she hotly whispered. Nick's eyes flared with desire as he captured her mouth in an all consuming kiss.

They took their time slowly exploring each other's body as the remove one piece of clothing at a time. Hands and lips moved unhurriedly over the silky surfaces of each others bodies. Every touch, every kiss sparked a deeper need in each of them. They moved in total sync with one another, like they had danced this dance a hundred times before. His hands and mouth touched every part of her body as hers did the same to his body. Every sigh, every moan and every cry of each other's name only aroused them more.

Sara had never experienced anything so erotic as Nick and his love making. As he laid her gently on the bed, she was consumed with his desire as he looked down on her with his hungry eyes. She felt his love for her as he softly kissed each of her fading bruises, from her forehead, to her neck down to her stomach. With each tender kiss he would whisper, "I love you." After he finished his loving journey, he rose up above her in all his splendid glory. Sara's eyes trailed hotly down his body and she sighed at the magnificent sight of him. "You are absolutely gorgeous Nick," she said to him with lust filled eyes. "And you Sara are perfection." he replied back.

He reached down and began caressing her body, his mouth soon following the path of his hands. Within moments he had her crying out his name as he savored the essence of her. Sara's body shook from her explosive release as she urgently pulled him to her mouth and kissed him passionately. She rolled him quickly and smiled down at him from her new vantage point. "My turn," she growled hotly.

Nick's senses were on overload. He had never been more stimulated in his life. No woman had ever responded to his touches and his kisses like Sara had and now her hungry mouth and hot hands were driving him wild. As her mouth moved further down his body he knew he was losing his control. He growled her name as he pulled her up and flipped her onto her back. She smiled at him knowingly. "I need you now," he breathed.

Sara reached up and gently touched his hurt shoulder. He could see the question in her eyes. "I saw the doctor yesterday. He said I could put some weight on it and that I could start physical therapy. I figured you were the perfect form of physical therapy for me." he said with a sexy grin. She reached up and stroked his cheek lovingly. "Just go easy okay? We'll have a thousand more times to do this when your completely healed." she said tenderly. "A thousand times huh?" Nick said with a waggle of his eyebrows. "I like the sound of that." He leaned down and kissed her, running his hand slowly down her body.

They stroked and caressed each other's bodies until they had reached the point of absolute arousal. As he poised himself above her, his eyes locked onto hers and he whispered, "I love you Sara." and as she opened herself to him she whispered, "I love you too." Their passion for one another reached its peak as their bodies joined together. They rode wave after wave of pleasure until they reached its crest. "Come with me," she whispered hotly in his ear. "Always," he whispered back as they fell together.

They laid there after a tangle of arms and legs still intimately joined. Nick rolled onto his back, pulling her on top of him. He ran his hand through her damp hair and smiled at her lovingly. "I have never experienced anything like that in my life. You just rocked my world Sara." She smiled down at him and kissed the tip of his nose. "And you just made me see stars." She grinned back.

His face suddenly got very serious as her stroked her cheek softly. "I've never made love to a woman that I've truly loved. Everything is so much more intense, the kisses, the touches, the feelings. I never expected it to be like this. I love you so much Sara. This is right. You and I together. I don't ever want these feelings to end. I know I'll love you till the day that I die."

His words filled her heart with joy as the tears formed in her eyes. "I never thought that I would ever get the chance to experience real love. I thought that no one would want me and that I would always be alone. But you came into my life and with you came hope. That hope as filled me completely and I'm happy for the first time in my life. You make me happy Nick and I can't imagine not having you by my side. I love you with my whole heart." She leaned down and kissed him tenderly.

They wrapped themselves up in each other's arms and drifted off to sleep. For the first time in a long while they both felt safe and secure. Their love for one another blanketed them for a moment against the horror that awaited them, a horror that was closer then either one realized. It sat across the street plotting the destruction of their new found love. Nick and Sara's lives were about to be placed precariously in the hands of a madman.

TBC


	25. Chapter 24

Thanks for the great reviews!!!!!

This chapter is rated R!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story.

Chapter 24

Sara woke slowly to the sensation of Nick's warm hand sliding from her lower back down to her rear end. He caressed it lovingly for a few moments before gliding his hand back up her body, over her hip and up to her breast. He cupped it tenderly in his hot hand as his thumb stroked her to full attention.

"Nick," she hotly whispered as she turned her head slightly to look at him. "Morning Darlin'," he whispered as he softly kissed her shoulder and gave her a sexy smile. He leaned over and began to explore the sensitive area behind her earlobe with his tongue. She shuttered at the arousing sensation his lips and hand was making her feel. She hissed his name again as she wiggled her backside against his very aroused body.

Sara felt him growl hungrily against her neck. In the next instant he had her rolled onto her back and he was straddling her waist. She looked up at him and saw his dark eyes dancing with desire. She couldn't keep the smile off her face. "Hungry again?" she murmured softly. "Ravenous," he replied heatedly.

"Then by all means Mr. Stokes, Bon Appetit" she said with a sexy grin. He gave her one of his trade mark smiles before he leaned down and captured her lips in a voracious kiss. He pulled away after a few moments and said with a playful smirk, "I figured it was my turn to reciprocate after your very amorous display earlier."

Sara cheeks flamed red as she remembered how she had ardently taken him before. He watched in amusement as her lovely cheeks turned a bright shade of pink. "I can honestly say Sara; no one as ever woke me up quite like that before." Her cheeks flushed even more at the memory of how she had woken up with a powerful need to have him again. She had watched him for a few moments as he had lain there sound asleep, her eyes slowly caressing his magnificent naked body. Not being able to restrain herself she had stroked his beautiful body to life.

She had smiled wickedly as she straddled his hips and sighed with pleasure when their bodies had become intimately joined. Nick's eyes had flown open at the sudden stimulating sensation. He had blinked once then twice not quite believing his eyes. There sat a very beautiful and very naked Sara. She had smiled down at him and then begun to move. His eyes then widened in realization at exactly where she was and what she was doing. "God Sara," he had moaned huskily. She had then leaned down and slowly brushed her chest up his to whisper hotly in his ear, "I need you Nick." Nick had growled impatiently and then tightly grasped her hips.

Then Nick's lips were on hers in an instant as he had hungrily kissed her. His hand had traveled up her back and into her hair as he ravaged her mouth. Needing air, their mouths had broken apart and Sara had slowly sat up. She then had run her hands slowly up his chest and over to his arms to capture his hands with hers. With their eyes locked, she had brought their joined hands up to her lips and tenderly kissed his knuckles. She had smiled at him and said, "I love you." His eyes had danced with happiness as he whispered, "I love you too Sara." With those words she then took him to paradise.

As the arousing memory ran through his head, he couldn't keep the smile off his face. Nick had to admit he had been very surprised by her bold actions but he had thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. It made him feel incredible to know that Sara craved him as deeply as he craved her. He watched her as a small embarrassed smile spread across her beautiful face, god how he loved her. Her self consciousness quickly disappeared as she watched the look of adoration fill his face.

He leaned down and kissed her tenderly on the cheek. Her eyes widened slightly in surprise. "You make me happy," he simply said. Sara's heart filled with emotion at his tender words. She reached up and caressed his cheek lovingly. A smile began to tug at the corners of her lips and her brown eyes began to dance with mischief. She wrapped her legs firmly around his waist and pulled his body down to hers. "Let me show you how happy you make me." she whispered huskily. ""By all means Darlin show me," he grinned. They spent their last hour before shift started loving each other completely.

* * *

Shift crept by agonizingly slow. Nick and Sara were working on two different cases and hadn't seen each other since shift had started. They finally met up in the break room and were extremely happy to steal a little alone time together. Sara was attempting to pour them both a cup of coffee as Nick nibbled seductively on her neck. "Nick," she hissed, "Someone is going to catch us." "Relax Darlin, Grissom, Cath and Warrick are all out of the building." he said with a confident grin. She turned around and gave him a glare when she felt his hand sneak up inside her shirt. "Behave yourself cowboy," she growled.

Nick just smiled and stepped away from her knowing he was treading into dangerous territory by the look she gave him. "I'm sorry Sara but I need to touch you to reassure myself that the last 8 hours were real and not some wonderful fantasy." Sara turned around to fully face him with a smirk on her face. "Darlin'," she successfully drawled, "That there love bite on your neck should be evidence enough that what happened between us was very real."

Nick's grin widened at her playful attempt on his Texas accent. He raised his hand and tenderly touched the mark she had so brazenly left. "Now Sara at least I left mine where roving eyes can't see." he said with a waggle of his eyebrows. Sara's face flamed red at precisely where he had left his mark.

Nick closed the distance between them as he gathered her face in his hands. He gently stoked her cheeks with his fingertips as his dark eyes danced with emotion. "I love you Sar," he quietly said. A smile graced her face and she whispered "I love you Nick." He leaned in and affectionately kissed her on the lips.

The sound of Nick's cell phone ringing broke them apart. "Stokes," he answered. "Hey! What's up?" His eyes met hers and she watched his face cloud over. She felt a sinking sensation in her stomach. "How many...No I don't think it's a good idea Grissom...I know...Are you sure...Fine...We'll see you there." Nick flipped his phone shut and held her concerned gaze for a moment before he spoke.

"There's been a shooting off the stripe. Three people were gunned down. Grissom wants us to take it. He's finishing up a scene and will meet us there. As soon as Warrick and Cath are done with their case they'll join us too." Sara relaxed when she realized it wasn't their guy. A small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. She was finally going back out into the field.

Nick watched as that old spark filled Sara's eyes. He knew she had been missing this part of her job. It was part of who she was and it completed her. She loved being able to see the whole picture and figuring out exactly how all of the pieces fit together. She had a great mind. She was one of the smartest people he had ever met and he admired her deeply for her intelligence. But at this moment he wished she would be a little more reluctant about going back out there.

Sara could tell that Nick was not pleased with their assignment. "I'll be fine Nick," she said as she kissed his cheek and headed toward the door. "I need to grab my stuff from my locker and double check my kit. I'll meet you at your Denali." she said with a smile. He watched her go and could clearly see the bounce in her step. He knew he should be happy that they could go back out into the field again but he still felt uneasy. That madman was still out there and he knew without a doubt that he was not finished with Sara. He just prayed that he could keep her safe.

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Sorry this chapter was so short and really not well written. I had hoped to write more but I am getting ready to go on vacation and I have very little time. I apologize now if I don't get to post for a while. Please don't give up on this story. The next chapter is MAJOR! I hope to get it posted before I leave. My fingers are crossed. Thanks for bearing with me and my extreme slowness. 


	26. Chapter 25

Thanks for the great reviews yet again. They definitely help motivate me to write. I hope you enjoy this chapter. It is not as well written as I would have liked but I wanted to get it posted before I left on vacation. I am not sure when I will get a chance to post again. It may be a few weeks. Please bear with me. I will be finishing this story but because of the holidays coming up, it will be a slow process. As always thanks for your great support. Let me know what you think of this chapter.

Chapter 25

He watched as the Denali pulled up to the curb, his heart slamming in his chest in excited anticipation. The passenger door opened quickly and she stepped out into the heat of the night. He felt his lips curl into a smile. She was here just as he planned. He had known that the other CSIs' were out on other assignments. He knew when he had killed those 3 girls that Grissom would have no other choice but to send Sara and her insignificant coworker.

He watched as she moved to the back of the SUV to get her kit. Her beautiful face was set in a mask of seriousness. The hot breeze stirred the dark waves of her hair and she impatiently pushed them out of her face. She looked absolutely breathtaking as she readied herself to do her job.

A surge of revulsion rushed through his body when he saw her turn her head to smile at the inferior Nick Stokes. His hate filled eyes settled on the irritating man for a moment taking in his handsome face, muscular frame and his annoying air of superiority. He was just like the last bastard she had dated in San Francisco. And where was he now? In a hole in the ground just like Nick Stokes soon would be.

He watched as Nick's eyes slowly scanned the sea of curious on-lookers, searching valiantly for the unseen danger. He almost laughed out loud when the self-righteous bastard looked right at him, but his dark eyes did not stop, they kept searching. He was in plain sight, right under their smart-ass noses and yet they couldn't see him. Stupid fools!

His eyes quickly diverted back to Sara as she made her way toward him. She passed him by without a word of acknowledgement. Fury filled him. How dare she not remember him! By the time he was finished with her, she would remember him. Her last living thought would be of him and only him. He watched her for a moment as she bent over to examine the first body. It was time to set the rest of his plan into motion. He faded back into the crowd, a ravenous wolf among a flock of naive sheep.

Sara worked methodically collecting what little evidence she could off of the body. She felt another wave of unease settle heavily in her stomach. She stopped again to let her eyes scan the crowd of spectators. Something had jarred an unsettling memory when she had first arrived on the scene. But as quickly as it had come, it had vanished and was now out of her reach. In its wake was a strong feeling of apprehension.

Sara glanced over at Nick and saw him watching her. "Are you okay?" he questioned worriedly. She nodded and stood up slowly stretching her stiff body. She walked over to where he was examining the second body.

"You have anything?" she asked. He shook his head no and stood up beside her, fighting the urge to take her in his arms and make her tell him what was bothering her.

Brass made his way over to the couple. "Glad to see you two out and about. Our victims were all at the bar across the street. Witnesses say they left together around 12:30. Soon after someone heard 3 gunshots and these 3 were found with a bullet a piece in their heads. We've got ids on all three of them, so were contacting their families. Seems that they were college roommates, were regulars at the bar and lots of the men seemed to know them. I've got my guys taking statements. What have you got?" Brass asked.

"Not much. All three were shot in the back of the head at close range. We haven't found any shell casings and it doesn't look like the suspect got close enough to touch any of them. We'll have to widen our search area. Their purses are in tack so it doesn't appear that robbery was a motive." Nick replied grimly. Brass nodded. "I'll check back in a while," he said as he walked away.

Nick's eyes traveled back to Sara and he watched as she scanned the crowd yet again. "Sara?" he said softly. She turned and gave him a small smile. "I'm just more nervous then I thought I'd be. I'm fine Nick really." she said unconvincingly. "I've got your back Sara," Nick said with heated intensity. She gave him a teasing grin and waggled her eyebrows and said, "And maybe later you can have my front too."

Nick laughed at her playfulness and said, "Just stay close." "I promise I like being in smelling distance of that sexy aftershave you wear." she grinned. Suddenly it hit her. She knew what had been bothering her: the distinct smell of cologne that she did not like, the cologne she had smelled on the man who had attacked her. Her eyes went wide with shock. He was here and he was close, close enough for her to smell. Her cry of alarm was cut off when a loud explosion detonated somewhere too close. She felt the intense heat blast by her and the force of the blow sent her to the ground.

The smoke was thick and heavy in the air and she felt it filling her lungs. She couldn't see anything around her. She could only here the screams of those people who had been too close. She tried to call out to Nick but the vile smoke filled her mouth and she choked on her words. She had just made it to her feet on shaky legs when another explosion blew somewhere to her left. The night filled with more horrific screams and cries of distress. Out of the thick smoke rushed a group of frantic people. Someone slammed into her and knocked her onto her back. She cried out in pain when someone tripped over her legs. She scrambled backwards trying desperately to stay out of the way of fleeing people.

Suddenly a pair of hands gripped her under the arms and yanked her to her feet. "Nick thank god," she gasped. She felt his hand clamp around her wrist and pull her urgently away from the chaotic scene. She followed blindly struggling to see anything through the thick smoke. Within moments they were away from the deadly smoke and she shuttered at the gruesome scene behind her. It looked like two cars that were parked on the street had been blown up and from the sounds of the agonizing screams some of the on-lookers had been caught in their destructive wake. She couldn't understand why someone would want to hurt so many people.

Sara took a couple of deep breaths trying to clear out her burning lungs. "Are you all right?" she asked turning to look at Nick for the first time. Sara's heart stopped beating for a moment and her mouth filled with bile when she saw who it was standing beside her, tightly holding her wrist. He smiled at her through tight lips and his beady eyes stared at her intently as he said, "I'm fine Sara. Thanks for asking."

Her eyes widened in terror as she desperately tried to pulled her wrist free of his hurtful grasp. "I wouldn't do that if I were you Sara," he said menacingly as he pulled out a 9 MM and held it to her throat. Sara's eyes closed in defeat. God she was a fool. Why had she thought he wouldn't come after her, that he was finished with her?

Sara opened her eyes and met his dark dangerous ones. She took in his appearance from his dark crew cut hair to his strong facial features. He was fairly attractive but he was not someone she would ever look twice at in a crowd. His most striking feature was his height. He was over 6 feet tall and he appeared to be well built.

She could feel his intense gaze on her face as she studied him. There was something familiar about him but she could not place her finger on it. Suddenly his mouth curled into a cruel smile and she gasped with she saw his teeth. He had a gap just like hers. Her eyes flew to his and she knew immediately who he was. It all came crashing back to her at once. San Francisco.

He saw the recognition flash through her scared brown eyes. He violently yanked her up against him and angrily growled, "It's a little late for a heartfelt reunion bitch!" Just then she heard her name being called and she quickly pulled out of his grasp to turn and face a very worried Nick. She heard the gun cock and felt it being pressed roughly into her spine. "Oh go no," her mind screamed. She turned back toward him, her eyes pleading with his cold heartless ones. It was then that she realized he was wearing a LVPD uniform. Nick had no idea that this monster standing behind her was bad guy and that at any given moment he was also going to be her executioner and his as well.

It had taken Nick a moment to get his bearing after the first explosion. The force of the blow had sent him stumbling backward and he had tripped over the body he had been examining, landing hard on his back. By the time he managed to get to his feet again, the air and ground shook with another explosion. The air was thick and heavy with smoke as he choked out Sara's name. He moved his hands frantically trying to clear the air so he could see. He was hit from behind when a mob of frightened people came racing by trying to get as far away from the explosions as possible. He heard Sara's cry of pain from somewhere to his right. "Sara," he choked out.

His eyes were beginning to sting and tear from the acidy fumes that clogged the night air. The heat was almost unbearable. He closed his eyes and tried to move in the direction he thought he heard Sara's cry. "Sara," he called. Nothing. "Sara," he called again louder. Still nothing. Where the hell was she?

The smoke was slowly lifting and through squinted eyes he hurriedly searched the area where he thought she should be. She wasn't there. He could feel his heart begin to pound anxiously in his chest. He scanned the area, quickly accessing that someone had set off two car bombs. There were now more then 3 bodies scattered across the ground. He swore silently. He turned frantically searching for her, sighing with relief when he finally found her.

She was standing across the street by a squad car with a police officer. Thank god she was alright. He hurried toward her through the mist of remaining smoke, calling out her name. He watched as she swung around to look at him. His steps faltered slightly when he saw a distraught look on her face. His eyes quickly traveled to the man who was standing much too close to her. He was a tall man, standing easily over 6 feet and he was powerfully built.

Nick recognized him as someone he had met before either at a crime scene or at the police station, but he couldn't recall his name. He noticed that the officer had his hand tightly wrapped around Sara's wrist. His other hand was somewhere behind her back. His eyes jerked back up to Sara's frightened face and he knew instantly that this was the guy.

Nick halted his steps about 10 feet away from them and withdrew his gun quickly. "Let her go now!" he commanded. "I don't think so Sir Nicholas the fool. She and I have some unfinished business," he laughed viciously. "Let her go!" Nick repeated. "She's mine now, to have and to hold from this day forward until DEATH DO US PART," he spat venomously. Nick watched Sara wince at his meaningful words and his stomach dropped to his knees.

Sara was trying desperately to think of some way to escape from his grasp but his hand held her wrist in a vice-like grip. She tried to move but his hand tightened its hold and she flinched in pain. He removed the gun from behind her back and pulled her securely against his chest. He brought the gun up to her chest and began to run it back and forth across her breasts. She shuttered at the revolting sensation.

Sara watched as rage filled Nick's face and he took a few steps closer. She felt a sinking sensation in her stomach when she realized what the bastard was doing. He was baiting Nick to come closer. "Nick please stay where you are!" she begged. She heard the madman laugh triumphantly in her ear.

Nick hesitated for a moment at her words. He watched in fury as the SOB stroked her again with his gun. He heard his name and his eyes shot to Sara's. His heart constricted in sorrow when he saw her mouth the words, "I love you." He knew she was about to do something foolish. "Sara No!" he screamed as watched her attempt to head butt the monster, but he had been ready for her. In a blink of an eye, the bastard stepped away from her moving head. In a rage, he took her wrist and twisted it backwards. Nick could hear the sound of her bone breaking as she cried out in agony. She fell to her knees in pain.

Nick's eyes were riveted on Sara when he heard, "It's time to say goodbye Sir Nicholas the fool!" His eyes shot to the madman and he realized it was too late for him to do anything. He felt 1,2,3,4 rounds slam into his chest. The impact was so great he felt his body being lifted right off the ground. He heard the sound of Sara screaming his name in panic. His last thought was that he had broken his promise. He hadn't protected her at all.

Sara's world came crashing down around her when she saw Nick's body struck over and over again with the bullets. She screamed in agony as she watched his body fly through the air and land on the ground with a sickening thud. The tears fell in torrents down her face as she begged him to get up. She cried she needed him and that she loved him over and over again. She heard her tormenter laugh cruelly behind her as he yanked her viciously to her feet. She shuttered in fear knowing it would soon be her turn to die.

She heard him call out Warrick's name and her tear filled eyes focused in on her friend standing near Nick's body. When she heard the words "say goodbye", she lashed out in desperation at her attacker. But it was too late. Another bomb detonated and Warrick was gone. She hit him over and over again hysterically as he laughed. With a single hand, he grabbed her around the neck and began to squeeze. Sara clawed at his hand but to no avail. She felt her life giving air leave her. She slumped over into his arms unconscious.

He picked her up without grace and threw her violently into the backseat of the squad car. He figured she's be out for at least a couple of hours. Enough time for him to get to where he needed to be and then he'd have all the time in the world to make sure Sara Sidle never forgot his face. He would be the last person she saw before she died.

* * *

Grissom, Catherine and Warrick jumped out of the Denali and stared at the shocking scene before them. "Oh my god," Catherine cried out when she spotted Brass sitting on the ground with a deep gash on his hand. Catherine rushed over to him with Warrick and Grissom right on her heels. "Are you all right?" she questioned as pulled out a tissue from her pocket and placed it gently against his wound. The sounds of sirens could be heard in the distance and they knew help was on its way. 

Brass winced and nodded as he said, "Some asshole set off 2 car bombs." Grissom interrupted him and demanded, "Where are Sara and Nick?" Brass shook his head slowly and said, "They were over there on the sidewalk collecting evidence." He pointed to his left, "I haven't seen them since I talked them about 5 minutes ago."

Warrick hastily scanned the area, finally finding them across the street with a police officer. "There they…" he stopped mid-sentence and growled, "Shit!" as he took off running. Catherine quickly stood and watched as Warrick tried to make his way to his friends, but burning debris, bodies and crying people slowed his mission. She felt Grissom grip her arm and her eyes focused in on what Warrick had seen.

A man held Sara in his arms and he had a gun pointed at Sara. Nick stood a few feet away from them and had his gun pointed at the man. Catherine and Grissom watched the dreadful scene play out like it was in slow motion. They watched as Sara tried to escape but her captor quickly brought her to her knees. The sound of her pain filled cry echoed across the street.

Both Grissom and Catherine were in motion when they realized what was going to happen next. Catherine's eyes shot back to Warrick as she watched him draw his gun. She knew he was not going to make it in time; he was still to far away. Catherine could hear her own scream resounding in her ears, as Nick's body was slammed by the bullets and the force of the impact sent his body flying into the air. Beside her she could hear Grissom's strangled cry of rage.

Out of the darkness of the night came the heartbreaking sound of Sara screaming Nick's name mixed with Warrick's cry of distress. Suddenly the night lit up and the air vibrated again as another car bomb went off. The explosion brought Catherine and Grissom to their knees.

Warrick watched in horror as his friend was shot over and over again in the chest. He heard himself screaming, "NOOOOO!" He took aim at the bastard who had shot his friend. The smug SOB just smiled at him as he calmly pointed his gun at Sara's sobbing head. Warrick froze. There was no doubt in his mind that the madman would kill Sara without hesitation.

Warrick watched helplessly as the bastard yanked Sara roughly to her feet. Sara was beside herself with grief. She didn't even see him standing there. He could hear her saying, "Please get up Nick. I need you. Don't leave me. I love you", over and over again. Warrick heard his name being called and he locked eyes with the devil. "Say goodbye," he laughed triumphantly. In the next instant another bomb detonated and Warrick was blown off his feet.

The thick acidy smoke choked in Catherine's throat as she tried to stand up. Grissom grabbed her hand and pulled her back down to the ground. "The air is easier to breath down here," he said simply. She met his worried eyes and hers filled with tears. "Warrick," she sputtered, "He was standing near the car." "It's all right Catherine," he said gently taking her in his arms. "But Nicky, he shot him over and over again." she sobbed into Grissom's neck. He pulled away from her slowly and touched her cheek. "They're fine Catherine. Let's go help our friends." He pulled her to her feet and they stumbled through the slowly lifting smoke.

Their steps faltered when they saw the still form of Warrick on the ground and a few feet away from him lay the unmoving body of Nick. Catherine felt her knees give out as she sobbed, "Oh god Gil." Grissom griped her arm tightly trying to hold her up as he frantically searched the area where Sara had been moments ago. She was gone along with the police car.

He closed his eyes in defeat. He had lost her. He shook his head trying to figure out how everything had gotten so out of control. Grissom looked down at his fallen friends and then up into the smoke blackened sky. He felt the heat of the night slowly and thoroughly consuming him. He then did something he swore he would never do. Gil Grissom began to pray.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm sorry to leave you with such a cliffhanger. I'm leaving for sunny Florida so I will not be posting for a few weeks. SORRY!!! I'm hoping this vacation will motivate me to write a fabulous conclusion. I'm not sure which way I want to go: happy or angsty. Let me know if you have a preference. Please review. I'll be looking forward to reading them when I get back. Thanks again for your support. 


	27. hapter 26

I apologize profusely for my tardiness in updating. My only excuse was that I enjoyed my vacation too much. When I returned I was in a writers slump. I am slowly getting myself back on track to finish this story. I am very sorry to have kept you all waiting. I will also apologize now for this chapter. It did not flow freely and therefore I feel it is a bit forced. Hopefully as I begin writing again I will pick up the original tempo of the story. Please bear with me. Again thanks for your patience. The vote was for a happy story (no character deaths (for now!)). So here it is. As always please let me know what you think.

Chapter 26

Catherine Willows paced nervously outside one of the rooms in the emergency area. It had been over an hour and she had heard nothing about either of her co-workers. She ran her hand anxiously through her strawberry blond tresses and sighed with exasperation. She looked at her cell for the tenth time knowing that she wasn't suppose to have it on but consequences be damned, she needed to know if Grissom and Brass had found Sara yet.

The door to room finally opened and a nurse stepped outside looking a bit frazzled. Catherine turned to her with impatient eyes and waited. "The doctor will be out in a minute," the nurse said earnestly. Catherine's mouth tightened into a scowl and she growled with frustration at the nurse. "I'm sorry," the nurse said before hurrying down the hall.

"Damn it," Catherine groaned as she started her pacing once again. She hadn't finished her second turn when the doctor emerged from the room. "Doctor," Catherine said fretfully stepping toward him. "Ms Willows," he answered with a nod of his head.

"Mr. Brown is in stable condition. Fortunately for him his CSI vest took the blunt of the blast. He has 2nd degree burns on his left arm and his left leg. They should heal fine. However, he did take a serious blow to the head when he was blown off his feet. He is conscious but has a concussion. He'll need to stay in the hospital for observation."

Catherine sighed with relief. Thank god he was all right. "And Nick?" she asked apprehensively. The doctors face tensed somewhat and Catherine held her breath. "Mr. Stokes is in more serious condition. There's no doubt that his Kevlar vest saved his life. The powerful impact of the bullets broke 3 of his ribs. One of the damaged ribs punctured his right lung. He was having difficulty breathing so we had to put him on a ventilator. He needs to go in for surgery to repair his lung. But Mr. Stokes is being very uncooperative at the moment. He refuses the surgery. He wants to see Sara." the doctor said with a frustrated shake of his head.

"Shit," Catherine thought as she chewed nervously on her bottom lip. "Can I talk to him?" she asked. "Please do. We need to put in a chest tube to expand his lung and check to make sure there is no blood collecting between his lung and his chest wall, as soon as possible. I'll give you a few moments." he said with quick smile. Catherine squared her shoulders and marched into the room ready to do battle. She faltered slightly at the sight of her two co-workers lying helplessly in hospital beds and hooked up to various machines. These usually strong, unwavering and self-reliant men looked anything but.

Catherine met Nick's sorrowful brown eyes. She smiled at him sadly and had to turn away before she started to cry. She turned to Rick and said, "How are you feeling?" "Like I was just blown up," he said with a chuckle, "but I'll be all right. It's this stubborn fool who needs to get his ass in gear." Nick grunted and Catherine turned to look back at him. "Sara?" he gasped through his breathing tub.

She glanced back at Warrick unable to stop the tears that filled her eyes. Warrick's eyes widened fearing the worst. "I'm sorry Nick," she muttered turning back to him. "The bastard took her. We couldn't get to her fast enough. Grissom and Brass are working on finding her right now."

She watched helplessly as Nick's eyes filled with tears. He pushed his covers away and tried to sit up. Pain filled his body and he slumped back into bed. "Damnit Nick," Catherine growled as she rushed to his side. "You need to stay in bed and go have your surgery. You need to be strong for Sara." Nick turned his head away from her in embarrassment, as tears of grief began to slip from his eyes. "Nick," she said gently, "Please look at me." He turned slowly wiping at his tears with the back of his hand. "You know Grissom would never let anything happen to her. You know both he and Brass are doing everything under the sun to find her. Gil will stop at nothing until he has Sara back where she belongs."

Nick nodded slowly knowing full well that Grissom would do anything for the woman he loved, for the woman they both loved. "What do you know so far?" Warrick asked. Catherine took Nick's hand and said, "We know he's a Las Vegas cop. His name is Ted Craven and he's worked for the department for almost a year. He transferred from Reno, where he had worked for almost three years. Previous to that he was in San Francisco; specifically he was detective and worked with Sara frequently until she moved here. As far as we know he and Sara did not have a personal relationship. We've got calls to their previous co-workers in hopes of finding some explanation or further connection. Grissom and Brass are on their way to Craven's residence. I haven't heard anything yet. "

"So she worked with him in San Fran. Obviously there must not have been any confliction between them or else Sara would have said something." Warrick commented. "I just wonder what would have made him become fixated on Sara. Did he purposely get a job in Vegas to be near her? But why wait the three years?" Catherine questioned.

"Hopefully Gris and Brass will find something at this psycho's house," Warrick said. Nick squeezed Catherine's hand to get her attention. She could read the expression in his eyes that he was terrified for Sara's safety. "Nicky, Sara is a fighter. She's not going to let some man push her around. You know that. Plus she has another reason to fight," Catherine said. Nick raised his eyebrows in confusion.

"You Nick. She loves you and she would do anything to get back to you, just like you'd do anything for her, like have this surgery so you can get back on your feet so you can take care of her when she gets home." Catherine finished with a reassuring smile. Nick's hand tightened around hers in gratitude for her comforting words.

At that moment the doctor came into the room. "So Mr. Stokes are you ready for the surgery?" he asked tentatively. Nick nodded slowly. "Good decision. I'll have a nurse come get you for preparations and then she'll wheel you up to the operating room. The procedure itself is simple. As long as we don't have any complications, you should be in recovery within 2 hours. I'll see you shortly. Thank you Ms Willows for your persuasive powers," the doctor said with a grin before leaving the room.

Catherine looked down at Nick and could feel his helplessness. "Just get strong Nicky. We will bring her home to you. I promise." she whispered before giving him a kiss on the cheek. The nurse came in then and checked on Warrick before heading over to get Nick. "I'll be waiting for you bro. Good luck." Warrick said. Nick gave them a tired smile as he headed out the door.

Catherine sighed wearily as she sat down in a chair next to Warrick's bed. "It's not good is it?" Warrick asked softly. Catherine shook her head as her eyes began to fill with tears. "If Sara thinks Nicks dead, I don't think she's going to fight him. I think she'll just give up." she answered sadly. "Damn," Warrick mumbled. He could clearly see the look of anguish on Sara's face as screamed at Nick to get up. He just hoped she remembered he had his vest on. "If I know Sara, she'll want to take down the man who hurt Nick. She'll fight alright." Warrick said with conviction. "I hope you're right Rick, god how I hope you're right." Catherine said.

* * *

Across town, Grissom, Brass and the S.W.A.T. team surrounded the suspect's home. With raised weapons, they entered the house. Grissom made his way slowly through the living room. His eyes meticulously scanning every item it sight. A call from one of the officers had him and Brass hurrying down the hallway to a room at the end of the house, upon entering it he could hear Brass sputter, "Sweet Jesus."

Grissom's stomach rolled as he surveyed the appalling scene before him. Everywhere he looked there was an image of Sara; colored pictures, black and whites, pictures of Sara from San Francisco, pictures of her at crime scenes here in Vegas, pictures of her out to breakfast with the team. He rubbed his head wearily. He could feel a headache coming on.

He slowly turned taking in all the images of her beautiful face. The maniac had definitely captured all her true faces from her pout, to her pursed lips, to her little lost girl look, to her radiant smile. He knew her all too well. He wondered how closely they had worked together in San Francisco. He felt a stab of jealousy course through him at the thought of someone knowing all her faces especially the ones she tried so desperately to keep hidden. He thought he was the only one who could read her veiled expressions, apparently he was wrong. This man had to have been close enough to her to be able to pick up on her unique facial characteristics. Why hadn't Sara thought of him? She must have thought of him as completely harmless otherwise he was sure she would have said something. The sound of Brass calling his name broke him out of his reverie.

"Gil you better take a look at this." Brass said urgently. Grissom was by his side in an instant. "This is a tape from a police cruiser. Take a look what's on it." Brass said. Grissom looked at the image on the TV screen not sure what he was looking for. It was somewhere on the stripe and there were dozens of people walking along the sidewalks. Suddenly he recognized a man crossing the street and walking off the screen. Warrick. Grissom's eyes zeroed back in to where Warrick had just come from. On the far left of the screen he could make out the familiar backs of two people. Nick and Sara with their arms linked together. "What the?" he thought in confusion. He glanced down at the date and time stamp that was continuously running on the police video. May 20, 2004; 5:30 A.M. His mind scrambled anxiously. It couldn't be. His eyes jumped back to the images on the screen. He watched as Nick and Sara parted company and cursed silently with a disturbing realization when Sara climbed into her car and pulled out onto the street.

Grissom's stomach tightened because he knew what was going to happen next. Over the course of the next several minutes the police car followed Sara's car. He held his breath each time her car briefly crossed the yellow line. Finally his agony ended when the flashing blue and white lights came on. He couldn't tear his eyes off the image of Sara stepping from the car looking totally defeated.

"Shit," Brass grumbled, "He was the one who pulled her over for her DWI." "Yeah, but the bastard was sitting there waiting for them to come out of that bar. How long had he been stalking her? He had probably been waiting for the perfect moment to approach her. Look at his face. He's pissed she doesn't recognize him." Grissom said as he pointed to the screen.

"I wonder how many times he had presented himself to her and she didn't recognize him. Each rejection probably pushed him just a little bit further until finally he broke." Brass said shaking his head.

Grissom sighed in irritation. "We need to find out where he has taken her. He's had this planned for a while. Unfortunately he's had plenty of time to cover his tracks. We're probably not going to find anything in this house. But have your guys search it top to bottom. We're looking for anything with an address on it."

"How long do you think we've got?" Brass asked solemnly. Grissom's jaws tightened and his eyes darkened with anger. "He's going to want to play with her awhile. He'll keep her alive and torment her as long as he is getting enjoyment out of it."

"Do you think Sara's strong enough to handle it?" Brass asked quietly. Grissom looked away for a long moment and then met Brass's eyes. "I honestly don't know Jim and that scares the hell out of me."

* * *

Sara felt a stinging sensation in her arm and she gasped in pain as she tried to pull away. Her eyes flew open and she tried frantically to focus on her surroundings. Everything was a blur. She tried to push herself up but screamed in agony when a searing pain exploded from her wrist and shot up her arm. She heard the sound of laughter and her eyes tried once again to focus. Once they finally did she shut then quickly in revulsion. She felt a hand wrap around her throat squeezing roughly. "Open your eyes Sara," he hissed.

She did so reluctantly fighting back the tears that were beginning to seep from the corners of her eyes. He smiled at her wickedly and wiped his finger at one of her escaped tears. She turned away from his touch in disgust. His hand was back on her throat in an instant. "Bitch," he growled. Her eyes flew angrily back to his and she bit her tongue to hold back the vile words she wanted to scream at him. It would do her no good to provoke him.

He smiled in victory and said, "That's better." He held up a syringe for her to see. "I gave you a little something to help ease the pain in your wrist." he said with a smirk. She tried to say something but her words slurred together. She could feel the power of the drug he had injected her with pulling her under. The last thing she heard before she slipped completely under were the words, "Welcome to Hell Sara."

TBC

There you have it. The long awaited chapter. Please tell me what you think. Thanks! I promise I will try to update very soon.


	28. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: I own nothing. I just like to write about the characters.

Chapter 27

The sound of arguing voices woke Nick from his dreamless sleep. His mind pushed through the jumble of disarrayed thoughts in his head, trying to assess exactly where he was and why he felt like shit. He winced in pain as he tried to move. He felt like a ton of bricks were sitting on his chest. He felt a cool hand touch his forehead and he woozily whispered, "Sara?"

There was a hesitation before a woman's voice said, "It's Catherine, Nick. You're going to be fine. The operation was a success. They didn't find any internal bleeding." One eye opened slowly and he hurriedly closed it due to the bright glare of the overhead lights. He groaned as he tried to move again. "Nicky, try and lie still. You're going to be uncomfortable for the next few days."

He struggled to open his eyes again, this time managing to keep them open. He slowly focused on the smiling face of Catherine. "Welcome back, handsome." she grinned. "How long was I out?" he asked. "You were in surgery for about an hour and half. You've been asleep for almost 2 more."

He closed his eyes again as the torrent of memories filled his mind: He and Sara making love, whispered I love you's, waking up in each others arms, explosions, the grin of a mad man, Sara's eyes pleading with him, Sara telling him that she loved him, Sara screaming out his name in agony as the bullets slammed into his chest.

"Sara?" he asked as he slowly opened his eyes meeting Catherine's sorrowful ones. She shook her head remorsefully, "I'm sorry Nicky. We haven't found her yet." He turned his head away as his eyes filled with tears. He had broken his promise to protect her. She was in grave danger because of his inability to keep her safe. If any thing happen to her , he would never forgive himself.

As if reading his mind, Catherine said sternly, "This is not your fault Nick. He has played us all. He's had this planned for a long time. I don't think any of us could have prevented it."

Nick turned to question what she meant and noticed a very weary Grissom standing a few feet behind her. His eyes locked onto the older man begging for some promising answers.

Grissom took a couple steps forward, faltering for a moment not sure what to say. "I'm sorry," he stammered looking away from Nick's pain filled brown eyes. He wanted to say more but the words lodged themselves tightly in his throat. "Gil," Catherine started, "It's not your fault either. We need to stay focused for Sara' sake. I know we're all scared shitless but we can't stand here blaming ourselves about what we could have done differently."

"She's right," came Warrick's voice from across the room. "Let's fill Nick in on what we know so far and go from there." Nick's eyes shifted over to his friend lying in a nearby bed. He gave him a weak smile. "Glad your okay man," Warrick said. "You too," Nick whispered hoarsely.

Grissom began to fill Nick in on everything they had found out about the suspect thus far. Nick's heart shuttered at the knowledge that this mad man had been stalking Sara for over a year. He closed his eyes and began to pray that Sara was all right and that she knew they wouldn't stop looking until they found her.

**_400 miles away in a remote cabin north of _****_Reno_**

Something soft brushed against Sara's cheek and she sighed at the comforting sensation. She smiled tenderly with her eyes still closed and lovingly whispered Nick's name.

She gasped in pain when a pair of hands clamped down on her forearms and violently yanked her upwards. Her terrified eyes flew open to meet the angry glare of her captor. "He's gone bitch and the sooner you accept it, the easier your life will be."

She fisted her uninjured hand and swung it upwards, smiling when it connected soundly with his chin. She thrust her legs up shoving him away with her feet. Her sudden attack threw him off balance and Sara scrambled off the bed scurrying as quickly as possible to the door.

She felt the knob slip through her fingers as she was yanked brutally by her hair. Her breath left her when she was slammed harshly up against the wall. "You listen and listen good Sara. There is no one around for miles. It's just you and me. They're not going to find us. Do you understand? I've thoroughly covered my tracks." he grinned wickedly.

Sara pursed her lips in defiance. "I'm going to laugh like hell when they come through that door and take you down, you sick bastard." she growled heatedly. He grin seemed to grow bigger. "By the time they figure out where we are you'll be a lifeless corpse rotting in the ground."

Rage filled Sara and she kicked him forcefully in the shin. He growled out in pain, grabbing a hold of her injured wrist twisting it. Sara screamed out in agony and fell down to her knees. He leaned down and whispered, "Don't do that again Bitch." She turned her face toward his and spit at him. His eyes widened in surprise at her boldness. He slowly wiped his face off with the back of his hand. He stepped away from her, his eyes filling slowly with blistering rage.

"Is this how you want to play it Sara? I can handle that. You want me to make it hurt, I can comply." He reached down and grabbed her by the hair dragging her toward him. Sara frantically tried to get to her feet but she couldn't move fast enough. She could feel her hair being ripped from her scalp. She smothered her scream of pain. She would not give him the satisfaction.

He suddenly released her hair and she fell to the floor at his feet. "This is where you belong Sara, on your hands and knees at my feet, so get use to it!" he spat venomously. He raised his feet and kicked her harshly in her stomach. Sara gasped in pain and rolled herself into a tight ball trying to protect herself from further assault.

When nothing happened she hesitantly opened her eyes and looked up at him. "Why?" she questioned slowly. His eyes clouded over for a moment and he looked away from her. He seemed to be deciding whether to answer her or not. He sighed heavily before reaching down, grabbing hold of her arm and yanking her upwards. Sara recoiled at his touch and tensed waiting for the power of his fury to reign down on her.

Instead he pushed her gently toward the bed and directed her to sit down. He stared hard at her for a moment before saying, "Do you remember San Francisco?" Sara nodded slowly. "Describe our relationship as you remember it." he said softly. Sara knew she had to answer carefully. One wrong word could send him over the edge. Her mind raced quickly trying to remember if there had been more to their relationship other then working together at crime scenes.

She cleared her throat and said, "You were a detective with the SFPD and we would work on cases occasionally. We were on friendly terms and would joke around together but we were not close friends. When the gang would hang out after shift you'd be there. Sometimes we talked."

He nodded his head slowly, pleased that she had remembered. She shrugged her shoulders not sure what else he wanted her to say. He got this distant look in his eyes and a smile crossed his face. "You were so beautiful and full of life back then. You looked at everything with such excitement. You loved solving the puzzle. I would watch you at the crime scenes as you analyzed everything around you. You were breath-taking to watch Sara. But then you began to make wrong choices and you began to change. You were losing your passion. You tried to run from your bad decisions and you came here looking for redemption. But you didn't find what you were looking for. Instead you sunk further into your own personal hell. I watched you as you patiently waited for him to acknowledge you and accept you as his equal. But it never happened."

He met her eyes and held her confused gaze. "Gil Grissom, the man you thought was going to be your salvation." he said with a smirk. Sara's eyes widened in surprise, god what else did he know. "He sucked the life right out of you Sara. He was a fool not to have realized what you were offering him. You would have given him anything. He had all the power, as it should be between a man and a woman. I know you're capable of being submissive Sara; you've been compliant and obedient with him for the past 4 years. That's all I want from you Sara, surrender yourself to me completely and this nightmare will be over."

He reached out his hand to touch her cheek and she fought her impulse to flinch and scream at him. Instead she drew in a shaky breath and said, "I still don't understand why." He withdrew his hand from her cheek and her eyes closed briefly in relief.

"I loved you completely and I thought you were beginning to feel something for me. We were talking more often and I was going to ask you to breakfast when you true colors finally came through." he said quietly, his voice beginning to fill with menace again.

Sara raised her eyebrows in confusion. "Jason," he hissed softly as his eyes darkened with uncontrolled anger. Sara felt like she had been struck. She reeled away from him with wide eyes. God she had been so stupid. Of course it had been Jason, Jason the man who had turned her life upside down. Jason, the real reason she had left San Francisco and ran to Las Vegas. Jason the man who had broke her heart and left her feeling like a fool.

Sara turned away from him and fought to control the tears that were beginning to form in her eyes. "Don't you dare cry for that conceited, arrogant bastard." he hissed bitterly. "You made a huge mistake Sara and now it's time to pay for it." He reached for her suddenly and closed his hands around her throat. She didn't fight him but welcomed the darkness that came taking her far away from the awful memories of Jason Briggs.

**_Crime Lab, _****_Las Vegas_**

Greg Sanders stared at the report Bobby had just handed him about the bullets retrieved from the 3 young women who had been murdered. "Jesus do you know what this means? This guy keeps getting more psycho by the minute." Greg sputtered in disbelieve. Bobby nodded his head in agreement and headed toward the door. "I hope you guys nail his ass soon." he said over his shoulder. Greg only grunted in response his fingers already typing on the computer. With in seconds, he had the information he had been searching for.

He ran his hand tiredly over his face and stared at the screen. He picked up his phone and called the number he found. "Hi this is Greg Sanders and I work for the Las Vegas Crime Lab. I'd like to ask you a few questions if I could." Ten minutes later he had all the information he needed. He hung up the phone slowly, shaking his head in shock. He picked up the phone again and dialed Grissom's cell.

"Boss its Greg. You're not going to believe this but Bobby got a hit on the bullets retrieved from the 3 murdered girls. Ballistics showed that the same gun and bullets were used to kill a SFPD detective Jason Briggs 4 years ago. I found out Jason Briggs was Ted Craven's partner," Greg hesitated for a moment, forcing him self to reveal what else he had learned, "Jason Briggs had also been engaged to Sara." Greg waited for a moment but silence filled the phone. Greg groaned inward. This case had just gone from bad to worse in a heartbeat. Sara had been keeping a secret, a secret that could end up costing her, her life.

TBC

Sorry to leave you all hanging. Let me know what you think about this turn of events. Thanks!!!


	29. Chapter 28

Thanks for all your positive reviews. I appreciate every single one of them. I apologize for taking forever to update. I am finding it very difficult to write these next few chapters. Please be forewarned that this chapter is somewhat violent. I do not wish to exploit Sara as being a weak female brutalized by a man. I wish to establish that her capturer is emotionally unstable and has a violent nature. I realize I maybe writing Sara out of character but in this story she has to maintain some of her feminine vulnerability based on her past experiences with controlling men. I would love all feedback and suggestions if you are interested. Thank you.

Chapter 28

Grissom could hear Greg's anxious voice calling his name on the other end of the phone. Engaged? Sara? It wasn't possible. He cleared his throat trying to focus on what he should say. "Greg, Catherine and I are on our way back to the lab. We'll talk then." he said curtly.

He flipped his phone shut and shoved it into his pocket, scowling deeply at the road ahead of him as his other hand clutched the steering wheel. He could feel Catherine's worried eyes watching him intently. They had just left Nick and Warrick at the hospital with strict orders to get some rest.

"What is it?" Catherine asked with concern. Grissom sighed heavily. "It seems that the gun our suspect used to kill those girls tonight was also used to kill a SFPD detective 4 years ago. The detective happened to our suspect's partner."

Grissom hesitated for a moment before continuing. "It also seems that the murdered detective had been engaged to Sara while she was working in San Francisco." he finished in an even voice. He turned to look at Catherine when she didn't respond. Her mouth was open in disbelief. "Why didn't she tell us?... Jesus I wonder if Nick knows? …My God if he doesn't…Why the hell didn't Sara tell us Gil?"

Grissom slowly shook his head, still not quite believing this latest bit of damning information. "Lets get to the lab and see what else Greg can tell us," he said calmly. Silence filled the SUV as both senior CSI's thought about how this turn of events was going to affect their investigation and how Nick was going to react if Sara hadn't told him.

**_400 miles away in a cabin outside of _****_Reno_**

The pain in Sara's throat was excruciating. She reached up and tenderly touched her neck. She winced. She was going to have one hell of a bruise. She slowly opened her eyes only to be greeted with darkness. She blinked a couple of times and sighed thankfully when she realized it was nighttime. She had no idea how long she had been unconscious only knowing it had been daylight when he had sent her to sweet oblivion.

Sara listened for a full 3 minutes before breathing a ragged sigh. She was alone in the room. Thank God. She flexed her tired and aching muscles. She slowly sat up, her eyes finally adjusting to the darkness. She was in a small room without any windows. The only thing in the room was a bed, if you could even call it that. It consisted of 2 mattresses on the floor. That was it. There were no sheets, blankets or pillows.

She shifted uncomfortably, realizing she needed to use a bathroom. She would have to ask him to take her. Something she was sure he was eagerly waiting for, her having to ask him for help. She cursed silently, fighting back the tears that threatened to spill. God how she hated feeling vulnerable and dependent on a man, it was something that she never wanted to experience again.

Unfortunately the memories came flooding back too quickly, drowning her in their intensity. Jason. God how foolish she had been. She had thought he had loved her, wanted to marry her. She had been so stupid. She realized suddenly that the others would find out about him. What would they think? What would Nick do? She hadn't been honest with him. She had purposely held back this part of her life. She hadn't told Nick because she didn't want him thinking any less of her, thinking that she was pathetic. She didn't want him realizing the same thing that Jason had. She wasn't enough, that she would never be able to satisfy all his needs and desires. She wasn't woman enough.

The tears ran freely down her cheeks. She had to believe Nick was different. That he loved her for who she was. He had told her so time after time. She had seen the love in his eyes. With him it had been special. It had felt right. For the first time in her life she had felt truly loved. She had to hold on to that feeling, believe in it. She wouldn't let this mad man take that away from her. Nick was her salvation.

God Nick! She tried desperately to believe that he was all right. She had realized he had had on his bullet proof vest. That thought alone gave her some comfort. She knew he had been seriously hurt but somehow she knew deep down inside he was okay. And Warrick she prayed that he was all right too. They would find her. Nick would save her. She couldn't give up on that hope.

Sara struggled to her feet and swayed unsteadily. When was the last time she had eaten anything. She closed her eyes and fought down the nausea that rolled up violently up into her throat. She moved on shaky legs to the door and rested against it for a moment. She swallowed the bitter taste of bile back down and raised her hand to the door. She slammed the palm of her hand against the solid wood 3 times and yelled. "Hey!"

She waited a moment and was met with silence. She tried again. Silence. She twisted the doorknob in fury and slammed her shoulder against the door, screaming "Bastard!" Nothing. She tried to calm her overtaxed nerves. She wiped at the tears coursing down her cheeks in frustration. She banged on the door again this time using his name. "Ted open the door. Ted I need to use the bathroom. I know your there. TED! Damn you open the door." She threw her weight against the door, a small sob escaping from her lips. She slid to the floor in defeat. She knew what he wanted but she refused to give it to him.

She curled up into a ball and tried to focus on anything other then her need to pee. She lasted 10 minutes until the pressure became too much. She sat up slowly and slammed her hand against the door. " Ted ….please.. I need to go to the bathroom….Ted?" she said desperately. Silence. She choked back her tears and sobbed "Ted please… I need you…please, please."

The door opened suddenly and Sara fell onto her arms on the floor at his feet. He reached out and gently stroked her cheek. "Now that wasn't so hard Sara. All you needed to do was ask me nicely," he said with a victorious grin.

He pulled her along after him and pushed her into a small bathroom. He stood there and waited. She looked at him with large brown eyes. "You said you had to go, now go! I'm not leaving." Sara opened her mouth to protest, but she knew it would only anger him. She looked away from him and swallowed her humiliation. She did what she needed to do as quickly as possible.

She went to the sink and washed her hands. He took a step forward and moved in close behind her. She met his dark dangerous eyes in the mirror above the sink. He smiled menacingly at her. He reached up and touched the ugly bruise on her throat. She forced herself not to wince.

"Sara,' he said huskily as he continued to stroke her neck. "You are so lovely." Her hands griped the sink in revulsion. "Why do you pick men that are so wrong for you?" he questioned.

When she didn't answer he continued, "I would have given you everything. I would have shown you what real love was suppose to feel like. I thought you would have learned your lesson after what Jason did to you. But no, you fall right back into the arms of another arrogant, self serving bastard. Nick Stokes is just like Jason. How can you not see it?" he growled hotly.

Sara shook her head adamantly. "They are nothing alike. Nick is a kind, honest, tender man. He would never hurt me." she hissed. He grabbed her by the shoulders and roughly turned her around, slamming the small of her back against the sink. She gasped in pain.

He began to laugh cruelly. "Nick is made from the same mold as Jason. Conceited pricks that suck you in with their good lucks and charm until you give them what they want, your body and self esteem. He'll humiliate you just like Jason did. He won't give you a second glance when he finds someone prettier, sexier. You're such a fool Sara. You let him defile you and I can't have that. I can't have you with another man's touch soiling you."

He yanked her harshly and pushed her callously into a shower stall. "Clean his stench off you now Sara. I want you to be pure when I touch you," he spat angrily as he turned the water on and slammed the shower door shut. Sara gasped in shock when the cold water hit her body. She recoiled into the corner trying to get out from underneath the icy spray. She went to turn off the water when the door opened suddenly and he stood there with a gun pointed at her.

"Take you clothes off now Sara," he said in a calm voice. She didn't move. "You'll do as I say or I'll kill one of your friends. Do you know how easy it is to rig a car bomb? That's all it would take would be a turn of the ignition switch and BOOM!" he screamed. "Bye, bye Greg Sanders," he finished with an evil smirk.

She knew without a doubt he would do it. She could not have anymore innocent deaths on her conscious. With shaking hands she began to undress. He watched her silently, his beady eyes never leaving her body. When she finished, he took her wet clothes from her and handed her a bar of soap. He leaned over and adjusted the water until it got warm. "Cleanse yourself until this bar of soap is gone. I want no trace of him left on you." he said coldly. He shut the door and left her to do her business.

Sara leaned over and began to retch until there was nothing left in her stomach. The man was insane. She took the soap and began to scrub herself everywhere she had felt his rat like eyes. Without physically touching her he still managed to rape her with his eyes. She felt violated and dirty, like she would never be clean again. She scrubbed herself until her skin was red and numb, the water ran cold and the soap was gone. But to her it still wasn't enough.

She wrapped her arms around herself and huddled in the corner, trying to avoid the frigid water. She tried to hold back a sob but it escaped from her lips anyway. She couldn't let herself fall apart now. Nick told her she was the strongest woman he knew. She had to believe that now. She could get through this. She had survived the viciousness of cold hearted men before and she could do it again. This time she had something to fight for. She had Nick. She would get through this for Nick. She would fight with everything she had because she would not let this psycho take away the one thing she had. Hope. Hope for a life with Nick, a life that involved love, happiness and a chance at a family one day. He would not win.

Sara readied herself and turned the water off. She tried to control the shaking of her body but couldn't. She felt frozen on the outside as well as on the inside. She pushed open the door and sighed with relief when she saw that she was alone. There was a single towel on the counter and she snatched it up. It barely covered her shoulders but at least it was something. She dried herself off a quickly as possible and covered her front as the door opened.

He stood in the doorway for a moment just staring at her. He then reached out his hand and offered her something. Without thought she took it from him and held it up. It was a silky red negligee. Numbly she dropped the towel and slipped the sheer material over her head. It emphasized all the right areas on her body and stopped in the middle of her thighs. She couldn't have done any better if she had picked in out herself. "Thank you,' she murmured dully.

He smiled in response. "Good girl. You're learning. Now let's get you something to eat." he said allowing her to pass by him and step into the next room. Her eyes quickly scanned the room. It was a kitchen/ living room area. He motioned for her to take a seat at a small table. She did wordlessly, her eyes still observing and filing away everything she saw.

Sara heard him laugh and her eyes flew to his. "You have your CSI look on Sara. Are you memorizing every small detail of this place just in case you get the chance to escape? Are you looking for a weapon to use against me? he said menacingly as he took a step toward her.

She looked up at him with blank eyes. "You really don't want me to just give up do you? I figured you'd want me to play at least a little while longer." she said with a hint of a challenge in her voice He stood there watching her for a moment, his face unreadable. Then suddenly a huge grin broke out across his face and he let out a deep laugh.

"God Sara you're incredible, so full of life and determination. And you wonder why I fell in love with you." He leaned down and whispered hotly in her ear, "I'm so going to enjoy breaking you." Sara felt a tremor of fear race through her body. She prayed her friends would find her before that happened.

**_400 Miles Away at the _****_Desert _****_Palms _****_Hospital_**

Nick slowly opened his eyes. The room was dark. He glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed in helplessness. It was 9:00 pm. Sara had been missing for over 18 hours.

"We're going to bring her home Nick." Warrick said from a nearby bed. "Hey man, how are you feeling?" Nick asked. "I'm a little banged up and the burn throbs but other then that I'm ready to get the hell out of here." Warrick replied.

"I hear you. My chest is still sore but I'm going nuts just laying here. I need to be doing something to help. I feel like I've failed her." Nick said dejectedly.

"Nick man, you know Gris, Cath, Brass and Greg are working their asses off. They'll find her. Don't doubt it." Warrick said with conviction.

"I know Rick. It's the thought of that bastard touching her, hurting her. It's tearing me up inside." Nick said quietly.

"Sara's strong Nick, she's a fighter. Plus she's smarter then anybody I know. She's going to get through this. I promise." Warrick said with certainty.

"I hope that you're right man," Nick said softly as he turned his head away from his friend letting the tears fall silently down his cheeks. "I hope that you're right." he whispered sorrowfully to himself.

TBC

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This chapter did not turn out as well as I would have liked. I have a feeling it will be slow going for the next couple of chapters. I need to establish the history of Sara/ Ted/ Jason and I am finding it difficult to write. So please bear with me. As always reviews help inspire me so please keep them coming. I also enjoy suggestions so feel free to help. Thanks! 


	30. Note

NOTE:

My sincere apologises to those of you who have been patiently waiting for me to continue with this story. My computer completely crashed yet again. I have been without one for 7 weeks. I finally have a new one and my fingers are crossed. Unfortunately I need to find my groove again. I keep attempting to write but I can't seem to get the flow going again. I promise I will finish this story. Your faithful reviews keep me motivated. I hope to have a chapter up within the next few weeks. Thanks for your kind reviews. I do not have a beta reader and have to do all the proofing myself. Sometimes I miss things and I apologise for that. It takes a while for me to write everything and then go back through to look for mistakes. I know I miss quite a few things but you great readers have been most patient with my blunders. I thank you for that.

Thanks, JB (Sassytoo)


	31. Chapter 29

Dear Readers: I am back after a very long absence. Thanks for bearing with me and my continual computer problems. I have found writing this story very difficult. I had to go back and reread what I had previously written. I apologize for all my awful mistakes. I don't have a beta reader and I don't see my obvious mistakes because I have read the words so many times they seem right to me. Very Sorry! Please bear with me for this chapter and the next. I need to get back in the flow of finishing this story and I know I'm not there yet. I tried to give you as much back history on Sara and Ted as I could. I hope it all makes sense. Please let me know if I've screwed something up. Thanks!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of these characters.

Chapter 29

She was in that damned room again, pacing restlessly back and forth. She felt more in control of her emotions now that she had eaten. The grilled cheese sandwich and soup he had given her had gone down easier then she had expected. She had been famished and she knew she needed to keep her strength up to fight him. She shuddered slightly remembering how he had watched her with his soulless eyes. She knew there was no compassion in this man; he was a cold hearted killer. Her only hope was her colleagues and her desperate determination to be with Nick again, to hold him in her arms and tell him how much she loved him.

The heat in the room was stifling. She could feel the beads of perspiration snaking their way down her back and pooling in between her breasts. She ran her hand through her damp hair and sighed wearily. She sank down on to the mattress in exhaustion. She willed herself not to cry. She tried to fight the drowsiness that threatened to overtake her but she quickly lost the battle and fell into a troubled sleep.

She could see him. He was so close. Nick. He was here. He had found her. Her heart soared with elation. She tried to go to him but she couldn't move. And then she saw him; the cold-blooded madman. She screamed a warning at Nick but he didn't hear her. He kept walking toward her, smiling that damn adorable grin of his. The madman was almost on top of him now and in his hand he held a butcher's knife. She could see the blade's sharp edge glittering in the light. Her anguished cry filled her ears as she tried desperately to run to Nick. But it was useless. She couldn't move.

Her eyes locked with those of the killer as he raised the blade high in the air and slammed it forcefully into Nick's back. A sob escaped her lips as she watched helplessly as Nick fell to his knees. He sorrow filled eyes met hers as he reached out to her.

"Sara," he whispered as blood dripped down off his lips and fell soundlessly to the ground. She watched in agony as the knife stained with Nick's life's blood rose into the air again and slid back into his body. The madman's laugh filled the air. Sara screamed Nick's name over and over again.

"You're mine Sara forever and ever," she heard the madman hiss.

"Nooooo!" she cried sitting upright on the mattress.

Her body was drenched in sweat. Her hair matted to her head. She wrapped her arms protectively around herself, as she felt a chill slide slowly across her damp skin, settling itself deep in her bones. She shook her head slowly trying to push the horrid images out of her mind. Thank God it had been a dream. Nick was still alive and she was still imprisoned in this nightmare. She pushed herself to her feet and stretched her legs. She once again resumed her endless pacing; hoping the images from her nightmare would soon leave her.

The sound of the door opening sent her heart racing as she stopped and turned to face her captor. She self consciously crossed her arms trying to cover her scantily clad body as best she could from his probing eyes. He smiled at her smugly. "Did you have a nice dream about your little boyfriend Nick? How did I kill him Sara? Was it quick and painless or long and torturous? I hope it was the latter." he said with an evil grin.

"Bastard," Sara spat, turning her back to him.

He laughed heartlessly. "Turn around now Sara." he demanded.

She held her ground for a moment but knew if she disobeyed him there would be pain, lots of it. She turned around slowly and raised her chin in defiance. His face was an unreadable mask of stone. "Tell me why you threw yourself at Jason?" he said in a demanding hiss.

Sara blinked in confusion for a moment. She hadn't expected him to bring up her ex- fiancé. "I aaa…" she stuttered. He took a menacing step toward her and she hastily moved away from him. She stopped and held her ground. She sealed herself for his violent reaction and said softly, "Is that what he told you?"

Ted's eyes narrowed into tiny little slits as he took another step toward her. Sara lifted up her arms in preparation for his blow. He stopped and smiled at her, waiting for her to continue.

She swallowed the bile that filled her throat as her lunch threatened to make its way violently out of her stomach. She let her breath out slowly and started talking. "We met up one night in Mickey's Bar. We hit it off great and talked for what seemed like hours. He was the perfect gentleman all night. He walked me to my car and asked if I'd like to go out some time. I agreed and he kissed me on the check."

Sara stopped for a moment, her eyes filling with tears at the memory. She wiped at her eyes frantically and squared her shoulders in an effort to continue. "It was perfect for the first few weeks. We would talk on the phone or go out dinner. I should have realized that something wasn't right when he began dictating when we could see each other." She stopped and shook her head, her face a mask of humiliation.

Ted watched her and his hands balled into fists at his sides. He could feel his anger slowly making its way to the surface. His bastard of a partner lied to him. He felt her eyes on him and he looked away. "I take it that's not the version you heard." she said in a strained voice.

He was on her in an instant, slamming her down on the mattress. He held her wrists tightly in his grasp. He brought his face down to within an inch of hers, his rancid, hot breath scalding her face. "He said you got drunk and fucked in the backseat of his car," he spat. He brought his hips down and ground them painfully against her body. He moved his lips down to her ear and growled, "He said you liked it hard and rough Sara. That you begged him to hurt you."

Sara body trembled in shock at his words. She turned her head and bit him on his chin as hard as she could. Blood filled her mouth as he screamed out in pain. His hands were on her throat before she could she catch her breath. He glared down at her with pure venom in his eyes.

"Liar!" she spat at him.

He released his hold on her throat and wiped at his chin, staring down at the blood on his fingers for a moment. 'Bitch," he hissed hotly.

"Liar," she shot back.

A smile made its way slowly across his harden features. He settled his weigh fully across her body and Sara groaned at the immense pressure across her stomach.

"What he told me Sara was that you were a gullible fool. He never planned on marrying you. He had a good thing going and didn't want to blow it. He had the perfect setup; a naïve fiancé willing to do what ever he wanted and the freedom to screw whoever he wanted when the desire arose. Everything was going great until you caught him in bed with that whore."

Sara recoil at his words and her face grew red with humiliation. The memory of finding Jason in her bed screwing her colleague from the lab came crashing back.

"What good old Jason didn't realize was that I was the one who sent you to your apartment that day. Remember? I told you he had a surprise for you. And I bet you were really surprised weren't you Sara?" Ted said with a satisfied grin. "Jason was getting a bit to cocky for his own good. He needed to be knocked off his high horse. And Sara you certainly did a damn good job taking him down. I'll never forget that day at headquarters when you blasted him in front of thirty people, slapped him soundly in his arrogant face and threw his engagement ring in the trash." he said with a laugh.

Ted wiped absently at his bloody chin with his fingers as his eyes settled on hers. "You redeemed yourself that day Sara. I knew I could forgive you for giving yourself to that prick. I knew I would be able to cleanse your soul of his filth. But you up and left without a warning Sara. You ran from your humiliating mistake. You ran before I got a chance to tell you I had forgiven you for your sins. You really pissed me off Sara." He stopped talking for a moment, his eyes glazing over recalling some distant memory.

His weigh across her body was becoming unbearable and she was having difficulty breathing. She squirmed underneath him and his dark, menacing eyes snapped to her scared brown ones. "Jason became unbearable after you left. I couldn't take his whining, so I killed him and made it look like a drive by shooting. No one questioned it. Stupid fools." He said smugly.

Sara's eyes widened in horror, "You killed him?" she gasped. He nodded slowly with a cocky grin on his face.

"I knew I needed to leave San Fran so I transferred to Reno for a few years, trying to get you out of my system. But none of the girls I chose ever satisfied me. They weren't you. When the time was right I transferred here and got to know you all over again Sara. You are the only one for me and now you're finally mine." he whispered huskily.

Sara tried to absorb everything he had said to her. Her mind was racing and her heart was beating erratically in her chest. Girls? Oh God how many had he killed? her mind screamed. "How many?" she heard herself ask in a small voice.

Ted leaned down close to her face and whispered, "How many what Sara? How many whores did I rape and kill? Or how many did I bring here to the cabin and torture for days on end, until their will for life gave out and I had to bury them out in the yard." He smiled at Sara's shocked face. "I stopped counting after 12," he said grimly.

Sara let out an outraged scream at his mocking coldness and slammed her fists into his body as she began to thrash wildly trying desperately to free herself. "You cold hearted bastard!" she screamed.

"I like it when you fight back Sara. It turns me on." he laughed with pleasure. His hands were on her breasts in an instant as she bucked helplessly underneath his massive body and her fingers frantically clawed at his face. She could feel a scream trapped deep in the back of her throat as the tears began to spill from her eyes. There was no one here to hear her or help her. She was alone. The realization settled over her slowly, numbing her completely.

He felt her body relax in defeat and he was angered that she would give up so easily. He brought his lips down hard onto hers, tasting his blood there. He ground his mouth savagely against hers, enjoying the sensation of her whimper of pain.

But suddenly with strength he didn't realize she possessed, she punched him in the side of the head and pushed his body off of hers. She sprang to her feet and kicked him in the head and then in the groin. With in a second, her hands were on the doorknob turning it and she was out the door, running for her life.

Ted groaned as he rolled over onto his knees and got to his feet. He wiped at the blood on his face with the back of his hand. Damn she had kicked him hard. A smile graced his face as he headed toward the door. This was the Sara he loved. He could feel the adrenaline beginning to pump threw his veins. God how he loved the chase but the capture was the ultimate thrill. And now that Sara was his prize he would savor the hunt and the conquest that much more.

As he stepped through the doorway the impact of a frying pan smashing into the side of his head sent him to his knees. The power of it crashing into his skull a second time sent him into utter darkness.

A sob escaped Sara's lips and her hands trembled violently as she dropped the pan to the floor. She knew she had little time to help herself. She ran her hands threw her sweat drenched hair and readied herself for what laid ahead of her. She needed to be strong and use her head. She had to start thinking clearly if she expected to make it out of this nightmare alive. It was time to prove to her self that she was not a helpless female but a tough, capable woman in control of her own destiny.

TBC

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Sorry it was so short. Hope you liked it. It was hard getting back into writing this story. I apologize for it not being well written. I can only hope that the next chapter will get better. Please let me know what you think. Thanks. 


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